I have been trying to get my head around the full implications of the TPPA in general terms.
Reluctantly, I have heard myself beginning to sound like a conspiracy theorist!
These are my conclusions – please shoot them down!
As is obvious, I am not talking detail here, but broad generalisations.
1 – that there is a conspiracy by the 1% elite to financially enslave the world. They have so many more resources than the ‘man in the street’ and a unity of purpose which is beyond the grasp of the ordinary person. The recent meeting in Davos is a case in point. What better time for the elite to meet over cups of coffee or martinis and discuss the future direction of their corporate world? That over 600 CEOs had an input into the terms of the agreement, and that it was negotiated in almost complete secrecy, are red flags that we should have heeded.
2 – that TPPA and its brother treaties TTIP and TISA will impose a further level of governance on the countries which sign into the agreements. This will come in the form of the so-called chilling effect of potential law suits through ISDS. As one commentator said, the Legislative Council was abolished in 1951 – now it appears to be coming back as a supra-national corporate overseer. As someone else suggested, our parliament may become ‘middle-level managers,’ able to change small matters, but always deferring upwards to the corporates on major issues.
3 – that TPPA is not at all about free trade but about controlled or managed trade. Certainly, many tariffs have been eliminated but the projected benefits take years to come into effect – and may be supposed to be open to ‘unforseen’ events which might nullify those benefits. In other words, the TPPA is, in terms of trade, frankly, a poor deal.
4 – that climate change hardly gets a mention. How can it be possible to sign a ‘trade’ agreement which does not attempt at least to grapple with the greatest threat facing mankind? There appears to be no money to be made in saving the planet! Corporates, with a myopic narrowness of vision on profit, can’t see the bleaker larger picture. For this reason alone TPPA should be rejected!
Finally, I find myself looking almost with longing to an event which might overtake all these negotiations and signings: the coming global financial collapse. When the house of cards that is the neoliberal economic structure finally falls, there may be an opportunity, like with FDRs New Deal in 1932, and the election of the Labour Party in 1935, to radically sweep the elite out of existence (in the nicest possible way, of course) and return this country to the people.
The Norwegians did it! http://www.commondreams.org/views/2012/01/26/how-swedes-and-norwegians-broke-power-1-percent
But what a hell of a thing (a world-wide depression) to wish for!
would only take issue with point 4….the elites have not missed the larger bleaker picture due to a myopic focus on profit…..the elites are more aware than the general population of the impacts of climate change and seek to use that profit and position to insulate themselves at the cost of the many. In a world of diminishing resources and increasing risks their actions are Darwinian
As the “lifeboats” become increasingly overloaded their army of useful fools will be cast overboard as required.
Wondering about those Roadshows:
From “Its Our Future: “Warning: These Roadshows are not likely to be useful lobbying events. The government officials are going there to talk at us, not to listen. There will be opportunities to influence those who attend, particularly business people who are there, and it is important that we counter their spin. We will do a Q&A on http://www.itsourfuture.org.nz to help counter the usual government spin, and will update it after the Auckland roadshow….Protest! There will be protests at these roadshows – for information on TPPA events see FB pages for Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin and information on the Take Action page at It’s Our Future.”
Tony Veitch (not the partner-bashing 3rd rate broadcaster) 1.3.1
There is nothing about the Roadshows, in particular the 11th March event in Christchurch, at which I plan to protest, on the Take Action page – or if there is, I couldn’t find it.
I need to know the time, so I can be there!
Thank you Tony V. A great contribution and worthy of a post in its own right.
I agree with almost all your conclusions.
Part of the story should also include the work of Naomi Klein and her book Shock Doctrine, which explains how disasters have been used to further the corporate governance of the world.
I think the elite are aware of climate change and a part of their solution is to have lifeboats like New Zealand ready if and when things turn to custard and their Patriot Acts, TPPA, surveillance laws and other control techniques fail to manage an enraged population. It would explain why such energy has been put into making this country such a slavish follower of the neo-liberal doctrine.
Finally, we should not be scared to use the word conspiracy. The powerful and their useful idiots use the word because they don’t want us to question the status quo.
‘According to John Ayoto’s 20th century words, the phrase “conspiracy theory” was originally a neutral term and only acquired a pejorative connotation in the mid 1960s, implying that the advocate of the theory has a paranoid tendency to imagine the influence of some powerful, malicious, covert agency in events. According to Florida State University professor Lance deHaven-Smith’s 2013 book Conspiracy Theory in America, the phrase “conspiracy theory” was invented in the 1960s by the CIA to discredit JFK assassination conspiracy theories. ‘
Comments yesterday on the post about ACT’s climate change policy reminded me of an (unpublished) letter to the editor I wrote in Sept 2014.
“Many have commented on the vagueness of John Key and the tax cuts. National are just as vague about their climate change policy. I hadn’t heard much on National’s climate change policy, so I googled it today and got 2 hits. First was a page of press releases from Tim Groser, a link took me to a list of 36 policies, but not climate change. The second hit went to a National campaign page which said “our plan is focused on 4 key areas”. Climate change was not mentioned. There was no ‘search ’ function for me to find out more.”
National completely ignored climate change in the 2014 election and the MSM completely ignored it too. Maybe things will be different in 2017? 2020? 2032?
I think the Natz unofficial climate change policy is to ignore climate change. They don’t want to upset the voters (after seeing how many were at the march) but since they have signed TPPA they don’t have to worry – as Tony Veitch has concluded – “As someone else suggested, our parliament may become ‘middle-level managers,’ able to change small matters, but always deferring upwards to the corporates on major issues.” Good excuse not to do anything.
Chris 73 is just trying to railroad the excellent discussion started by Tony V above – take no notice of him ……. nor of the silly nonsense whoever guy williams is – just so silly its not worth repeating or even reading.
Its nothing to do with Tony V, I posted it here because its amusing but that you don’t know who Guy Williams is really does illustrate just how out of touch the left is with mainstream NZ
Guy Williams , Main Stream NZ????? Nah!!!
He is another hard to laugh at so called NZ comedian. Why would anybody with an interest in politics be at all interested in his drivel.
Well hes in a number of popular (and not so popular) shows both TV and radio so he has access to a large of number of people and he majored in political science so hes probably as qualified as most to speak on politics
Plus the article is amusing and thats the most important thing
The Labour Party was founded on 19th century concepts and ideals. Mostly around workers versus capital.
By the ’50s and ’60s Labour had largely accomplished everything they had originally set out to do.
Since then they have been floundering around trying to make up new goals, given up on following through their old goals to completion, and generally backing a new pro-ruling class status quo.
What purpose is Labour fit for now? They’ve accomplished as much major change as they could by the 50s and 60s, in the 1980s they undid large parts of it, and now, who knows? Round and round in circles.
I thought this was the Open Mike thread, where anyone can start a discussion on anything they choose. It’s actually not possible to railroad any discussion given the design of this website.
Who Guy Williams is, is irrelevant. I don’t care if he’s the local milkman, It’s what he says that’s important and I agree with his appraisal of Labour.
I also believe the local milkman’s opinion is as valid as anyones.
I also believe the local milkman’s opinion is as valid as anyones.
And there you’d be wrong. Opinions are only valid when they’re based upon fact. If they’re not then they’re obviously of no value.
It’s got nothing to do with being the milkman or any body else. For that matter, NZ never used to disregard what people said based upon what they did for a living and we were better off because of it.
” Opinions are only valid when they’re based upon fact. If they’re not then they’re obviously of no value.”
I don’t agree. Every opinion is valid. How could it not be? Opinion is opinion, no body is claiming it’s fact.
“It’s got nothing to do with being the milkman or any body else. For that matter, NZ never used to disregard what people said based upon what they did for a living and we were better off because of it.”
Yes, I believe that concurs with what I implied.
I guess what you are trying to say is that every one is free to have and opinion which is true however some opinions are more valid than others, e.g, one mans view say based on his observation and common sense that the earth is flat verses the collective wisdom of science that The earth is not flat, similarly left wing doctrine that equal outcome is more important than equal opportunity, abstract groups are more important than individuals and that there is no such thing as individual responsibility, have nots have simply been exploited by the mythical system
equal outcome is more important than equal opportunity, abstract groups are more important than individuals and that there is no such thing as individual responsibility,
[citations needed]
False premises, false conclusions. Less charitable interpretations involve mindless parrots and malice.
No, the facts show that the rich don’t pay for anything at all. In fact, they’re actually paid to be rich. These are the facts. You don’t like them and so cling to your delusion.
People from Remuera carry a genetic marker that renders them criminal subhumans. Being resident in Remuera for more than six months infects you with the genetic marker.
The best solution is to nuke Remuera, and hunt the survivors with dogs and petrol.
It’s the “entertainment” section, and no I don’t agree with Guy at all, cannot imagine the “perfect Labour Leader” in any human form, but Andrew Little is an intelligent man who cares about all NZers. I believe he will offer a sustainable, fairer system of government and have no problems with what he wears or whether he has “charisma” (whatever that is these days, lord knows Key hasn’t got any, despite being told over these long years that he has.)
So why is Key on 40% in the preferred PM stakes and Little on 9%?
If you don’t think it is down to charisma, it must mean that Little is simply not believed by the vast majority of NZers.
Averaging 39% over last 6 months in the Colmar Bruntons and Reid Research Polls. That’s 13-14 points down on his average during the Key Government’s First Term.
Highest rating over last 6 months = 40% (currently fluctuating within very tight parameters between 38%-40%)
Compared to high of 59% during First Term.
2/2 2015 = Key average 39%
2/2 2006 = Clark average 37%
Read Media reports over the last year and you’d assume from their hyperbolic rhetoric that Key is waaayyyyyyyy ahead of Clark. Reality is, as you can see, a mere 2 point difference.
(Clark did, however, start to fall away around mid-2007, albeit with a recovery of support during the 2008 Election campaign. Leader’s ratings often lift in the heat of a campaign with all the publicity / Leader’s Debates etc))
It was in 2006 that the Nats realised that Brash was unelectable and eased him out in favour of Key.
Little is about as electable as Brash was. And the sooner Labour admit that fact, the better.
Big day for world elections today. The Iran and Ireland results are slowly coming through, but seem inconclusive and will have to wait on coalition building:
Labour are getting punished for their support of austerity, with Sinn Féin beating them to third place and possibly part of a coalition if; a Fine Gael & Fianna Fáil coalition can’t make up the numbers with smaller parties and independents. All three of these parties have had long animosity so there may be a new election instead.
Also there is the South Carolina Democratic primary on the 27th (our 28th). This is only the second primary (Iowa and Nevada were caucuses), and favours Clinton; possibly because the antiestablishment black vote has somewhere else to go than Sanders:
It looks like Clinton has it in the bag with the Black Vote (62% of voters in this exit poll). 76% to 23% Sanders with 10 % counted (I don’t know what’s happened with Wilson).
Well they must be thinking in relatively strange ways because, despite Hillary’s usual feel-good charade as she courts the Black vote, the Clintons have done nothing to earn such devotion.
I was just making a comment on saxophones swordfish, not Black people’s views of the politicians on offer, which I’m quite sure are varied and complex.
Perhaps with the benefit of hindsight, Sanders should have sought the Green nomination for President. Trying to wrest the Democratic nomination from Clinton was always a tough ask.
Looking at some of the stuff he did as Mayor of Burlington, VT it seems that he would have been more of a fit for the Greenies. Missed oppurtunity here.
He may have won New Hampshire, but Alex Tsongas won it back in 1992, and we never saw or heard from him again (he actually died a few years later, but that’s beside the point..)
Fellow Auckland Mayoral candidate ‘Independent’ Phil Goff (currently Labour MP for Mt Roskill) supports the TPPA, road tolls, Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) and the sale of Auckland Council assets – starting with the Remuera Golf Course.
Which is why I expect to get electoral support from a number of Labour Party supporters, and the 64% of (2013) non-voters, who are unlikely, in my view, to feel inspired by these policies which are promoted by and serve the interests of the corporate 1%?
City Vision have endorsed Phil Goff as ‘their’ Mayoral candidate.
Phil Goff supports the TPPA, road tolls, Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) and the sale of Auckland Council assets – starting with the Remuera Golf Course.
Does that mean City Vision now supports the TPPA, road tolls, Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) and the sale of Auckland Council assets – starting with the Remuera Golf Course?
Fuck off, liar. City Vision haven’t endorsed Phil Goff, as you well know. Any chance you’ll get round to telling us why you are a climate change denier? No, thought not. Transparency is for others. aye?
Pay your rates, bludger. Then you might have some credibility.
No courtesy for lying spammers who troll this site to boost their own egos. Penny is a bludging bullshit artist who can’t answer a straight question. As I suggested yesterday, ACT is the party most closely aligned with her lifestyle and values.
“We are pleased to hear his solid commitment to retention of our publicly owned assets” seems straightforward enough evidence that City Vision are not endorsing Goff selling assets, let alone endorsing his candidacy. No doubt our dim local candidate will try to redefine ‘retention’ next.
“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.”
I don’t expect Penny to mend her ways but other readers deserve not to be continually lied to.
City Vision welcomes Phil Goff’s Mayoral Announcement and Prepares for 2016 Campaign
“Auckland needs strong, progressive leadership so we welcome Phil Goff’s announcement that he will campaign to be Auckland’s next Mayor”, says City Vision Councillor, Cathy Casey.
“Phil has a strong track record in senior positions, and is well known for being pragmatic, open-minded, and acting with integrity.
We are pleased to hear his solid commitment to retention of our publicly owned assets, his vision of a truly inclusive city, and his strong positions in favour of public transport and quality intensification;” says Cr Casey
“I have worked with Phil in my capacity as ward councillor for the last two terms since amalgamation and have developed a good working relationship with him in this time as well as an appreciation for his commitment to the people of Auckland.”
“City Vision believes that Auckland is at a cross-roads. The Supercity structure has helped to give the region a voice, and real progress on developing an integrated transport network has been made as a result.
However, there is no denying that many Aucklanders Havel lost confidence in Council in recent years and that a fresh start is required.
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.
……
________________________________________
In my view – the above-mentioned Press Release from City Vision is an endorsement of Phil Goff’s standing as a 2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Not yet a ‘formal’ endorsement by City Vision?
Then definitely, in my view, an ‘informal’ endorsement by City Vision.
I call bullsh*t on your semantics and ask again – do City Vision now support the TPPA, road tolls, PPPs and selling off Auckland Council assets – starting with the Remuera Golf Course?
Only one person has sought to take some likely policy positions of Goff and attach them to City Vision, by using the word ‘endorse’. It is clear that there is no arrangement on policy between those two entities.
Take some responsibility for your attempts to mislead readers and citizens. Better still, buck up your act. Your behaviour reduces the value of public discourse.
Ms Bright states: “Does that mean City Vision now supports the TPPA, road tolls, Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) and the sale of Auckland Council assets”.
City Vison states: “We are pleased to hear his solid commitment to retention of our publicly owned assets”.
Does that sound like an endorsement of that position, let alone of candidacy? Someone is trying to make black equal white here.
No different than opponents of intensifcation calling 3-storey buildings “high-rises”.
While there may be a precise political definition of the term “endorsement” from a “reasonable person” test, it certainly reads as an endorsement.
One might hope that an aspiring politician might then go, “In light of the discussion I’d like to clarify my comment. City Vision appear to support Goff on certain issues while stopping short of a formal endorsement” or such (in their own language and with attention to whether Goff is supported or the issue).
Having a barney on social media seems counter productive.
Would you care to provide the precise ‘political’ definition of the term “endorsement” upon which you are apparently relying – which differs from that which I provided by the Cambridge Dictionary?
Thank you Sacha for confirming that you do NOT have a precise political definition of “endorsement” that differs to that which I provided from the Cambridge Dictionary.
Which means, in my opinion, you just ‘made it up’.
Which means, in my view, there is little point in discussing such terms as political “endorsement” with you, Sacha?
Penny, how do you reconcile your reliance on precise dictionary definitions in regards to one part of the statement, with your complete ignoring of an explicit sentence at the end of the same statement?
Saying a political organisation “endorses” a candidate means that the organisation supports that candidate and wants its members and supporters to vote for that candidate and donate to their campaign, and help out in other ways.
Liking a candidate isn’t the same as saying everyone should vote for that candidate.
Sure, City Vision doesn’t think Goff is the devil. But if you work hard, you might gain equal respect in their eyes, and snatch their endorsement. Their actual endorsement, not just in a wider sense of the word that you’re using to mislead people.
Perhaps City Vision may change their tune and NOT end up ‘formally’ endorsing Phil Goff, given his now publicly stated position supporting the TPPA, road tolls, PPPs and the sale of Auckland Council owned assets – starting with the Remuera Golf Course?
We shall see.
However, as a proven anti-privatisation campaigner – I shall be taking no prisoners on these issues (as it were).
They like Goff, they’re happy to see he’s running, but in case a better candidate comes along they’re not asking anyone to help him out, they’re not aligning their campaigning to him, and they’re not endorsing him.
I can’t believe that I have to explain basic language skills to someone who sees themselves as mayor of a million-citizen city.
The deliberate misleading is what annoys me. Bad faith corrodes civic discussions. Perhaps others are fine with that sort of behaviour – after all, look at who we elect as PM.
no, I’m not, you nutbar. I live in Dunedin. I do, however, use the English language regularly.
The point is that adding the qualification “informal” does change the message somewhat. You might think it’s semantics, but it’s not.
Although from your perspective, I’m not sure how many formal or informal endorsements you’re likely to receive. You can’t even reply to the correct comment.
trp, you could always put your mod hat on. Isn’t it in the rules that if someone makes an assertion as fact they need to back it up when asked and do so within a reasonable timeframe?
Moderation has been loosened up, weka. All sorts of things that were not previously acceptable, such as racism and misogyny, are now fine. I’m not happy about it.
[It’s not true marty. Where it’s recognised, it’s gone…just the same less than perfect, but workable, procedure as always. Nothing at all has changed.] – Bill
We ‘all’ have nothing to sort out really. I mean, in a perfect world of perfect awareness and what not, they’re a number of things that would never see the light of day on ‘ts’. But peeps in’t perfect and so most peeps just do the best they can and act in good faith to keep ‘ts’ as tolerable as possible.
What we’re not prepared to accept are pointless personal attacks, or tone or language that has the effect of excluding others. We are intolerant of people starting or continuing flamewars where there is little discussion or debate. This includes making assertions that you are unable to substantiate with some proof (and that doesn’t mean endless links to unsubstantial authorities) or even argue when requested to do so. Such comments may be deleted without warning or one of the alternatives below may be employed. The action taken is completely up to the moderator who takes it.
An endorsement is an endorsement. Penny didn’t distinguish between ‘formal’ and ‘informal’ (Fucked if I care about the hair splitting on that one to be honest). Sasha provided a link that’s definitely a very strong informal endorsement. And that may or may not be a prelude to a formal endorsement.
All that happened after the initial conversation asking for back up (and me posting the rules). I don’t have an opinion about whether Penny has provided adequate backup, I think we past peak crazy already 😉
In my view te reo putake – the one who is effectively lying is YOU.
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.
……
________________________________________
How was the City Vision (public) Press Release supporting Phil Goff as an Auckland Mayoral candidate – not an ‘endorsement’ – albeit not yet a ‘formal’ endorsement?
Are you not yet familiar with the following words, in my opinion, of sound political wisdom?
Neither racism nor misogyny are fine as far as moderation on ts is concerned trp – and you know this.
Just because you wanted a person- an author you just happen to have huge issues with, condemned for allegedly racist comments, and got no bites (due, by the way, to the comments not being racist), does not translate as those with moderating rights okay-ing racism.
Are you a) saying the exchange I’m alluding to was racist?
(No-one – and I do mean no-one – who could be bothered to comment was in agreement with you on that.)
Or are you b) saying that I’m wrong when I say that recognised instances of racism will not be endorsed/tolerated by moderators when and where they come across it?
(As far as I’m aware, no moderator who comes across an instance of racism will defend it.)
The only reason I commented as I did above at 6.1.4.1.3 and as an edit in 6.1.4.1.1 is because it’s the truth of the matter. No-one anywhere has suggested any kind of change, in either policy or practice, in relation to racist comments.
TS actually does now tolerate bigotry. The rules haven’t changed, but the application has. You, personally, are happy to turn a blind eye as long as its a) done by someone you like and b) not about the folk north of Hadrian’s wall.
First sentence disingenuous insofar as that type of charge could always have been leveled at ‘ts’. But that’s because it’s to do with individual mods recognising those things when they appear. And no-one has a perfect awareness of various discriminations.
Second part of second sentence (change in application of the rules) patently untrue.
Third sentence completely riddled with nonsense, bullshit and lies.
And no link provided to back your claim that I defend racism.
Yes, Bill, right you are. You know why the link can’t be posted, but still you ask. How cute. You’ve helped lower the standard, and you know it. Give yourself a couple of slow claps.
So the reality is that there are no instances of me defending racism.
And what you’d like to think I was asking for (I wasn’t) is a portion of a back-end discussion, that obviously can’t be linked to, where you made a charge of racism against another, where that claim elicited not a single comment of support or agreement from anyone.
That you have taken that absence of any of support for your position to somehow mean that racism is fine by those who moderate is quite astonishing (and not a little troubling imo).
Yes, McFlock. And Bill knows I won’t reveal what was said on the back end discussion, hence his being precious about the link. It really is a case of a lowering of the tolerance level, dependent on who the commenter is. That’s something we get regularly accused of over at PG’s place, but I never previously thought actually happened here.
Anyhoo, my feelings on acceptable moderation aren’t everyone else’s. My line is that we shouldn’t leave bigotry unremarked upon, no matter who does it. That could be anything from a ‘steady on, old chap’ sort of thing to more severe restraints. But if we say nothing, particularly when it’s pointed out to us, we are tacitly approving it.
I can quite honestly say here that TRP is correct, City Vision have not officially endorsed Phil Goff and as for abuse well as someone that gets banned frequently and so forth, its their blog and you play by their rules
If you don’t accept the rules of the blog then set your own blog up
Trp is being a macho shithead and I can’t see much useful about what he is doing. Penny is annoying at least as many commenters as trp. What does that tell you?
1. There are angry and potentially violent people in positions of ‘status’ at this site, who lack self control and self awareness
2. That verbally abusing woman is acceptable at this site
3. That moderators and authors don’t respect eachother, openly
4. That commenters are hypocrites, and worse
5. That commenters cited rules regarding ‘backing up with facts’ and entered into pedantry over word definitions, suggesting warnings/bans instead of stepping up and shutting down the verbally abusive TRP
6. That NZ has little chance of turning around because the so called ‘left’ exhibits such behaviours
7. That jellousy and ego are too poweful for people to control for a better cause
Having come from the background of engineering workshop(s), I am not a delicate flower when it comes to profane language.
However – I do draw the line to being told to f.. k off when I am trying to debate, serious issues on ‘Open Mike’ pertaining to the upcoming local government elections, particularly in Auckland, where I am a Mayoral candidate.
I also take exception to offensive and defamatory comments made by te reo putake.
When MY rights are under attack – I WILL stand up and fight back.
In fact – I have defamatory proceedings on foot in the Auckland High Court, arising from comments made about me by the CEO of Auckland Council.
Copping ad hominem attacks, in my view, are usually a sign that you have ‘hit a nerve’ to which the other party has no valid reply (on the issue).
Don’t worry – I know how to defend myself (have plenty of practice on Kiwiblog 🙂
Those things were already in your head by the sounds of it, not so much to do with trp being a shit and Penny annoying the fuck out of a bunch of people.
5. That commenters cited rules regarding ‘backing up with facts’ and entered into pedantry over word definitions, suggesting warnings/bans instead of stepping up and shutting down the verbally abusive TRP
Commenter, single. I can’t shut trp down, he’s an author. I could have said something to him about his behaviour, but I’m sick of being the behaviour police around here. I am curious though, why didn’t you give him a telling off?
Of course you can shut him down, or try to. You’re clearly a long time contributer to this site, and undoubtedly have the respect of authors , moderators and commenters.
If you have reached the stage of being worn down being the behaviour police, and those who should be performing that role, don’t, won’t or in this instance, are the abusers…..
Then perhaps it’s time to move in a different direction before you lose reapect for yourself
te reo putake 6.1
28 February 2016 at 10:23 am
Fuck off, liar. City Vision haven’t endorsed Phil Goff, as you well know. Any chance you’ll get round to telling us why you are a climate change denier? No, thought not. Transparency is for others. aye?
Pay your rates, bludger. Then you might have some credibility.
___________________________________________________
Aren’t you supposed to be a ‘moderator’ te reo putake?
Your comment is both offensive and defamatory.
Starting with withdrawing and apologising for making that comment?
I also respectfully suggest that you ‘pull your head in’ and ‘mind your manners’?
As a ‘moderator’ – lead from the front and practice what you preach – sort of thing?
Fuck off liar. If you want to prove me wrong, post the link to City Vision’s endorsement of Phil Goff. You can’t, because you are lying. You talk a lot about transparency, but you refuse to be open and honest with the voters of Auckland or the readers of the Standard. You’re a spamming, trolling, bludgeing hypocrite.
Fuck off, liar. You’re a spam spewing, cut and paste troll, who hasn’t got enough integrity to address reasonable questions. You’re a bullshitter, a denier and an evader of the awkward truth. A person who wants to tell others what to do, while doing the opposite. Someone who thinks it’s everybody else’s burden to pay for the things we share.
Come to think of it, you might have what it takes to be mayor after all.
Are you currently here on planet earth, Penny? Just asking – nicely.
And yes, I am actually running City Vision from a back room in Standard Towers. I knew you’d find me out eventually, but crikey, that was fast! Now, what was that you were saying about your views on climate change?
It’s how they do business and if they can shape the world in their own image they will.
Someone once here posted the response of the steam companies to the development of electricity and how they legislated to take their power (no pun intended at all) back.
What changed at some point was not the behaviour of the rich and powerful. This continues unabated. What changed was the working class wresting some power off them through labour rights and re-distribution.
Change won’t happen until those things are wrested back again.
Right now no-one is wresting those back in NZ.
Even a simple concept like an 8 hour working day, 40 hour working week is anathema to every single political party in NZ. Something we used to lead the world in and were very proud of.
It’s not the right that have changed and need changing – it’s the cowed left.
some yes….but “the centre” is a very broad church, and as we know from polling it only requires a small portion of that congregation to shift to have the desired effect
It’s the left however that determine left policies. You can’t vote for left policies – such as an 8 hour working day – if those policies no longer exist within political parties.
You can’t strike if there’s no left policies enabling this. At present you can only strike at the expiry of a contract. Who is looking at changing this – no-one.
Unions are cowed and buy into things such as three year contracts when a one year contract could at least give them the power to strike every year. Three year contracts in a fast changing world just give away what little power unions have left.
The right and centre voters are summed up in this quote.
“The modern conservative is engaged in one of man’s oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness.” J.K. Galbraith
Of the participating public in General elections I would suggest the mobile ” centre” is as large as 40%….some more willing to be deceived than others.
The majority on these blogs are not members of this group.
It implies that people make a conscious decision not to vote because of one policy or other as opposed to say “Fuck it can’t be bothered cause they’re all the same anyway”.
I remember talking to one old lady on the bus who voted National. She did this because her (now long deceased husband) had told her to always vote National. Doing otherwise would let him down.
It’s much more complicated than the conscious decision making process because people are much more complicated than that and emotion will always play a part in decision making.
Part of the problem is seeing the appeal of the centre voters as the way to win elections.
On re-think was a good example this morning of how taking a principled and what would have been considered a far from centre position enabled and energised people and led to significant change.
For those who didn’t see this this was the land march.
At the end of the day left wing policies need to have some passion and resonance – an emotional as well as a rational being to attract voters.
Chasing the center voters as a tactic to win just comes across as cynical.
The logic might appeal to some rational sense but it’s clearly not enough.
It was also rational for Labour and Greens to not compete against each other in some seats (and lets face both parties had and have infinitely more control over that than the voters) and win the last election but the emotional attachment Labour have to themselves meant that did not happen.
It was much more rational if Labour wanted to help people at the bottom to put the $20-00 per week back on benefits before putting it back on NZS but they chose not to do this because of the emotional value they would get out of voting superannuitants.
Those on benefits continue to be poor and getting poorer.
you frame it incorrectly….it is not a case of “chasing ” the widely disparaged centre voter…it is convincing that relatively small proportion of them that their interests are better served by the alternative……and this has to be achieved in an environment of general disinterest and “once over lightly”….(your description of the National voter has its mirror image within Labour and these are not your target audience.)….once successful with this , only then can you hope to address the issues you outline.
the right loosely defined in NZ
The National Party
Act
the conservatives
the Maori Party
un-affiliated, or turn coats, or opportunists
NZFirst
Peter Fucken Dunne Party
Maori Party (yes i put them in two categories, as they admit to be working with everyone – all of he above just to get to parliament)
and i want people to vote, irrespective of whom they vote, i want them to vote. People have fought very hard to give us the rights we have today, and hardest of all the was right to vote especially for women.
Whom they vote for, that is not my choice to make, they will decide forthemselves once they are in the polling booth. But I want them to go there, and Just do it! tis the only point i am trying to make.
definitely do not forget about the most marginalised…..it is consideration of exactly that that requires a compromise to enable a less bad option…..and whether it is left enough or not is not the point, at least it is not blatantly corrupt.
@descendant of ssmith
I think you are making good points. It occurs to me that the centre voters are the ones without much passion. Easy peasy. they say they are looking for stability but really not too bothered providing they feel they are doing okay.
They are not driven by ideals of fairness and social mobility as on the left or on the RW side. an aggrieved defence against demands that others should have opportunities to rise and sit alongside these godlike achievers. (Refer to the Four Yorkshireman, monty python, ‘Aye, I had it hard etc.).
by and large thats true, and I agree there needs to be wholesale change…BUT, we need to work with whats available until such time as that change gathers momentum.
And getting rid of the current lot is becoming increasingly important as another term of this BS will take us further down the road of no return
1. Stop distributing profit to shareholders while you develop what you need to
2. Make the developers and builders of new homes in new subdivisions pay the additional costs needed.
The private sector is pretty good at telling us what things cost when they want to charge us long term existing users – work out the cost and charge the new users.
$5,000 per house seems small change if you’re paying over a million dollars for each house.
Wallace Chapman: “I won’t read any racist
messages on air. Here’s an anti-Maori one I’ve chosen.” Sunday Morning, RNZ National, 28 February 2016
If you listened to Mediawatch this morning, you would have heard a rather fraught debate between Willie Jackson and RNZ Head of Content Carol Hirschfeld about RNZ’s commitment, or lack of commitment, to Maori language and Maori culture.
After the 10 o’clock news, host Wallace Chapman said: “Lots of feedback about the Mediawatch programme this morning. But I have to say that a lot of the comments are RACIST. So I won’t be reading them out. Still, thanks for your comments, and keep them coming.
Less than an hour later, just before 11 o’clock, Chapman broke his pledge not to read out any racist statements. No doubt Chapman had received many intelligent and thoughtful responses about that debate, but he chose to read one that might have been sent in by his namesake Kyle Chapman, or by someone equally vile like Larry “Lackwit” Williams or David Round or Stephen Franks…
WALLACE CHAPMAN: There has been a LOT of feedback about the Mediawatch programme this morning. I’ll just read this one: “They’ve got their own TV station, for heaven’s sake.”
Yes please. Bring back Chris Laidlaw. While I believe Wallace Chapman is probably a quite nice chap he just doesn’t seem to know how to conduct an intelligent interview.
Democratic Presidential candidate Senator Bernie Sanders campaigns at the Circuit of the Americans in southeast Austin on Saturday, February 27.
Austin (KXAN) — Thousands lined up to see Sen. Bernie Sanders at Circuit of Americas Saturday morning, despite long security lines.
Sanders visited Austin to kick off his “Future to Believe in Austin Rally.” He took the stage just after noon.
At the beginning of his speech, Sanders pointed out Texas will vote for the most delegates of any state on Super Tuesday, with 222 pledged delegates of the 4,051 needed to win the nomination.
Sanders also said the nation’s minimum wage should be raised to $15 an hour, expand benefits to retired Americans, end homelessness among veterans and demand equal pay for women.
He asked the Austin crowd how many had student debt, which led to a lot of hands being raised.
“Unbelievable!” Sanders said of the Austin crowd. “This is an epidemic of debt.”
While talking about racial inequality, Sanders promised major reforms while attacking Republican frontrunner Donald Trump.
“We are not going to allow the Trumps of the world to divide us up,” Sanders said, which led to cheers. “And that we are going to bring major reforms to a broken, very broken, criminal justice system.”
………
___________________
Just seeing if I am able to write comments in here yet … and how long it takes for my comment to appear in the Standard 🙂
[lprent: You just have to get a first comment past a moderator. All we look for is that your comment has something vaguely to do with the post (not a criteria on OpenMike) and the conversation that you join, and doesn’t look like it was written by a idiot trying to learn how to wank online (and failing). That is because we’re interested in people who can express an opinion and then be able to argue for it with a degree of intelligence. This appears to be something that isn’t common amongst the neolithic self pleasuring trolls.
If it’d been my pass through moderating, this comment would probably not have gotten through. I detest people who can only grunt commentary on what they are manipulating. ]
“The old regimes of ‘Bailoutistan’ that were put in place by the troika, or by their acceptance of the troika programmes, have collapsed in every country where we had an election during the last twelve months,
So Pete George – in my opinion – is misrepresenting what I have said on his blog?
It will be interesting to see if he publishes my reply ..
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
(Consistent and persistent in her opposition to the TPPA, road tolls, privatisation via Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) and sales of Auckland Council assets (including the Remuera Golf Club).
You fucken prick trp or voice of reason for deleting my comment which WASN’T on the subthread you have decided to stop because your idiot mind couldn’t take it – what a fucken bogus weakling you are
No, trp, I can most definitely say what the problem is. Anyone here, including yourself, knows that I am not shy about explaining myself or unable to. In this instance I choose not to, because you have spent a day not hearing what has been said to you.
Looks like you have to have a login to contribute to it too, bummer 🙁 With heated disussions currently happening not sure if it will go any way to easing tensions either.
by John Edmundson The International Socialist Organisation (ISO) have recently reposted a February article, by Romany Tasker-Poland, explaining ISO’s position in the “trans rights” debate. It is available on their website and on their Facebook Page. The article sets out to explain why “socialists support trans rights”. It reads more ...
"Auckland City Mission: 10% of Kiwis experiencing food insecurity", RNZ, 16 October 2019:About half a million people are experiencing food insecurity, according to new research from the Auckland City Mission. Food insecurity, or food poverty, is defined as not having enough appropriate food. The City Mission said over the last ...
Media Statement for Immediate Release 16th October 2019 “Fake News” from Auckland City Council CCOs Board Chairs re pay and performance bonuses for top managers Despite comments from Auckland City Council CCOs Board Chairs re pay and performance bonuses for top managers—Herald Newspaper Tuesday Oct 15th–there is very little evidence ...
Would You Buy A Used Propaganda Video From This Man? Bridges and the National Party’s strategists have discovered that the ideas and attitudes considered acceptable by today’s editors and journalists are no longer enforceable. The rise and rise of the Internet and the social media platforms it spawned means that ...
There is plenty of evidence of the way the business mentality has permeated every level of society since the recrudescence of market liberalism 35 years ago. You only need to think of how citizens in need of help from their government, their state, their country, are now routinely described as ...
John MacCormickOver the last 40 years, New Zealanders – and people in other countries – have experienced big changes in the jobs they do and where they live and work. These changes include: a decline in manufacturing jobs an increase in jobs in ‘information-intensive’ industries (which are better paid ...
Nick Wilson, Leah Grout, Mereana Wilson, Anja Mizdrak, Phil Shoemack, Michael BakerProtecting waterways has the benefits of: (1) protecting water from hazardous microbes; (2) minimising cancer risk and other problems from nitrates in water; (3) avoiding algal blooms that are hazardous to health; (4) protecting mahinga kai uses (cultural ...
by The Council of Disobedient Women In a press release today Massey University announced it has decided to rebrand and reorientate after struggling to be a University for grown-ups. For some time the University has wanted to be a safe play space for wee-woke-misogynists who have been really badly triggered ...
After a brief dalliance with 'hard Revoke' it looks like the Lib Dems are changing ground on on Brexit, with leader Jo Swinson reverting to calling for a second referendum on Johnson's deal.The party has tabled an amendment to the Queen’s speech requesting that any deal brought back from Brussels ...
The government has decided that someone has done Something Bad. But despite their belief, there seems to be no evidence that they have actually broken the law. So the government's solution is to pass a retrospective law allowing them to be punished anyway, on a lower standard of proof. If ...
So, Judith Collins has done a Facebook rant about climate change, peddling the same shit National has been shovelling for the past twenty years: the impacts are overstated, there's no need to do anything about it, and its too hard anyway (oh, and its so unfair that people who peddle ...
Climate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change.If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, please send it to climate.change@stuff.co.nzThere is a lot of discussion on the benefits of ...
I came across this song quite by accident. If it isn't one of Greta Thunberg's favourites - it should be.Video courtesy of YouTube.This post is exclusive to Bowalley Road. ...
Last month, NZDF's shoddy coverup of what it knew about civilian casualties in Operation Burnham began to fall apart, with the revelation that a report on the matter, which NZDF claimed not to have, had been sitting in an NZDF safe for the past nine years. Yesterday, the man responsible ...
While many imagine that countries like the USA and Europe dominate space activities, in fact India is now a major player on this stage. It launches satellites for its own purposes and also commercially, and has constellations orbiting our planet and returning data of vital importance to that nation in ...
Thanks to a report from the Acting Inspector General of Intelligence and Security following a complaint by Nicky Hager, we have come to find out that the SIS illegally spied on Mr. Hager on behalf of the NZDF after publication of Hager’s 2011 book, Other People’s Wars. The NZDF justified ...
COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT GLOBAL WARMING MYTH 1: Global temperatures are rising at a rapid, unprecedented rate. FACT: The HadCRUT3 surface temperature index, produced by the Hadley Centre of the UK Met Office and the Climate Research Unit of the University of East Anglia, shows warming to 1878, cooling to 1911, ...
For the past week, Extinction Rebellion has been peacefully protesting in London to demand action on climate change. The British government's response? Ban their protests:Police have banned Extinction Rebellion protests from continuing anywhere in London, as they moved in almost without warning to clear protesters who remained at the movement’s ...
An essay by Judith Collins MP reported on Carbon News yesterday seems to show an alarming shift in attitude within the National Party. Collins argues against the Zero Carbon Bill, the Paris Agreement, and downplays the magnitude of climate impacts. The Paris Agreement was adopted in December 2015 and ratified ...
When they were running for election, Labour promised to overhaul the Employment Relations Act and introduce fair pay agreements to set basic pay and conditions on an industry level, preventing bad employers from undercutting good ones. They followed this up by establishing a working group, which reported back in January ...
A list of indicators of bad science – many of these are found in articles promoted by anti-fluoride activists. Anti-fluoride activists have been pouring money into a scaremongering campaign warning pregnant women not to drink fluoridated water. They claim fluoride will lower the IQ of their future child. Fluoride ...
Nothing Left To Say: Labour's pollster, Stephen Mills, remains swaddled-up in the comforting myths of the 1980s. As if the experience of Roger Douglas’s genuinely radical post-Muldoon policy agenda was literally a once-in-a-lifetime thing – as much as the party could possibly absorb for at least the next 50 years.MEMO ...
The Royal Commission on abuse in care is very significant for the disability community. For many decades last century, thousands of disabled children, and adults who managed to survive, were locked away from families and communities. This was not for anything they had done, but for the perceived threat their ...
With an unfair voting system, uneven electorates and an un-elected upper house, the UK's "democracy" is barely worthy of the name. But now the government wants to make it worse:The government has been accused of suppressing voters’ rights with the potential disenfranchisement of tens of thousands of people after plans ...
Back in the 90's and early 2000's, the building industry was building leaky homes which should never have been granted consent. Now it turns out they've been building dodgy office blocks as well:New imaging technology has revealed hundreds of major buildings nationwide have defective or missing concrete or reinforcing steel. ...
Local body election results were released over the weekend, to joy or despair depending on where you live. In Auckland, Phil Goff trounced John Tamihere, who is muttering darkly about running for Parliament again (but which party would want him?) Wellington is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Weta Workshop, except ...
How could government evolve over the next decades? Reports of democracy’s imminent demise are greatly exaggerated. However, satisfaction with political systems in many countries is low, so there is much to do for governments of all political stripes to improve relevance and trust. Digital technologies are seen as one ...
Two years have now gone by since the Friday afternoon when my university-student son and I headed out of our Barcelona flat to a nearby primary school, designated as a polling station for the vote that was to be held the following Sunday: the referendum on Catalonia’s independence from Spain ...
Overruled: The joint decision of Finance Minister, Grant Robertson (Labour) and his Associate Minister, David Parker (Labour) arguably the two most powerful ministers in Jacinda Ardern’s government, to grant OceanaGold the consents which Land Information Minister, Eugenie Sage (Greens) had earlier denied them, offers bitter proof of how hard fighting ...
More than double the number of people who will vote in this year’s local body elections have tried marijuana or urinated somewhere they shouldn’t have. As local elections look set for the lowest turnout in decades, with many regions falling well short of 40%, the Government is exploring a number ...
A Statement on Abortion Law Reform by the Council of Disobedient Women On the eve of bringing an end to antiquated, anti-women abortion laws Green MP Jan Logie intends to write women out of the Bill. With a stroke of the pen, the woke are aiming for total erasure ...
Musings continue apace about “the experienced businessman!” soon to be taking up a National Party MP position. Or to be more accurate, being parachuted into a seat to shut down their former MP Jamie-Lee Ross, who despite his own shortcomings shed at least some more light on the inner workings ...
The Ugandan government wants to murder gay people:Uganda has announced plans to impose the death penalty on homosexuals. The bill, colloquially known as “Kill the Gays” in Uganda, was nullified five years ago on a technicality, but the government said on Thursday it plans to resurrect it within weeks. The ...
Freedom Of Speech? The Säuberung (cleansing by fire) was the work of the German Student Union which, on 10 May 1933, under the watchful eye of the Nazi Reichminister for Propaganda, Joseph Goebbels, consigned 25,000 books to the flames in a ritual exorcism of “un-German thought”. According to the logic of the ...
“There can be no such thing as kaupapa Māori political parties or politics in Aotearoa” (Willie Jackson, Labour Party (2017). Māori TV, General/List Election Special) I begin with that claim because at the time, I was confounded at first that it fell out of Willie Jackson’s mouth, and then ...
New Zealand has prided itself for decades with regard to its lack of pollution, and all will be aware that the ‘100% Pure New Zealand‘ meme is under threat through land, water and air pollution of various causes. There is another type of contamination that the country also faces: light ...
New Zealand’s media is doing its part in Japan, reassuring those in the path of the storm that they won’t miss any rugby while away from their flooded homes. New Zealand sports reporters stationed in Japan for the Rugby World Cup have had the rare and heartwarming opportunity to inform ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones is the only Cabinet member in favour of putting it all on green. As Finance Minister Grant Robertson finds himself with an enormous $7.5 billion surplus, the Government has begun intense, at times contentious conversations about whether to put the money on red or black at ...
by Susanne Kemp At the start of September close to 100,000 school teachers went on strike in Jordan. They demanded a 50% pay rise. A pay rise actually agreed to by the regime back in 2014. In early October, however, in the face of government repression and threats, the teachers’ ...
Climate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change.If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, please send it to climate.change@stuff.co.nzWhy do people still think climate change isn’t real?David ...
Back in 2011, journalist Nicky Hager published Other People's Wars, an expose on NZDF's activities over the previous decade of the "war on terror". NZDF didn't like this, and especially didn't like the fact that it was base don leaks from their own. So, they had the SIS investigate him ...
The Zero Carbon Bill is due back from select committee in two weeks, and will likely pass its final stages in November. So naturally, farmers are planning a hate-march against it. But they're not just demanding lower methane targets so they can keep on destroying the planet; they're also demanding ...
Last year, California burned. This year, to stop it happening again (or rather, to stop themselves from being found liable if it happens again), Pacific Gas and Electric is cutting power to half the state for a week:Schools are closed. Traffic lights down. Tunnels dark. Businesses unopened. Hospitals running on ...
The Best Way: Missing from the on-line voting debate is any reference to the voting system that produces turn-out figures ranging from 77 to 93 percent of registered voters. The voting system used to collect and count the votes cast in our parliamentary elections. The system that involves citizens making ...
Among the great new bunch of political friends we have been making recently is the excellent Australian-based Marxist gender-critical site, Freer Lives. So we asked the comrade who set up that blog to write something for Redline on the blog, himself, his analysis of the rise of gender politics and ...
by Don Franks The Auckland City Mission is struggling with a 40 percent increase in demand for food parcels this year. A total of 23,020 were needed by June. Last month Missioner Chris Farrelly told the Herald the “cupboards are bare” and without an emergency food drive, he can’t see ...
by The Council of Disobedient Women Massey Wellington Student Association had a sit-in today. Imagine a sit-in. On a campus. Against a women’s rights meeting. Did the ’60s really happen or did we fucking dream it? They gathered in the student square, an echo chamber. Sitting on soft pillows ...
For some reasons, my post about the mystery message from inside the Downing Street bunker seemed to catch people's attention. Quite a lot of hits from NZ (unsurprisingly) and the USA (a bit more puzzlingly, but hi there, USAians!!) and 76 views from the Ukraine.I've celebrated my Ukrainian readers in ...
First, almost a score of Labour MPs seem to have sent a letter to the EU basically begging them to accept a deal - any deal - just so Britain can get the Heck on with Brexiting instead of being trapped in limbo:
by Phil Duncan In 2016 the National-led government suspended the Parent Visa Category, through which migrants were able to bring their parents into New Zealand. Since then over 5,700 people have been in immigration limbo, stuck on the visa wait list. Labour is now bringing back the scheme. Well, sort ...
The following was released yesterday (Tues, October 8) by the women’s liberation organisation Speak Up for Women. On 23 September Speak Up For Women announced that we would be holding an event at the Massey University Theaterette in Wellington. The event is called Feminism 2020. The intention of the event ...
The government is currently consulting on plans to improve freshwater quality. So naturally, farmers oppose it:South Taranaki farmers are preparing to fight proposed national freshwater changes that some fear will bankrupt them. The Government's proposed National Environment Standard on Freshwater Management, released in September, rated the Waingongoro River as one ...
Yesterday was the last day for (reliably) posting your vote away in local body elections. Turnouts are mostly much lower than the equivalent time last year (Palmerston North is down 2.3%), and so naturally people are pushing their online-voting snake oil again. Because the online census worked so well, lets ...
This essay, on the political legacy of the eugenics movement, by Kenan Malik was originally published in the Observer on 6 October 2019, under the headline ‘The spirit of eugenics is still with us, as immigrants know to their cost’. Birth control. Intelligence tests. Town planning. Immigration controls. It’s striking how ...
Another year, and the government has announced another enormous government "surplus". And just like last year, its nothing of the sort. When we have people homeless and sick and hungry, when we have schools and hospitals still falling down, when we have underpaid public servants and infrastucture unmaintained or unbuilt, ...
James Forsyth at The Spectator (I know, I know) has tapped one of his contacts inside Number Ten for an insight into the Johnson administration's thinking and strategy.It is fascinating, unsettling and quite, quite mad. Some key points:Negotiations have stalled and the Johnson administration are keen to blame the EU: ...
Fatal Contact: With the arrival of captain James Cook in October 1769, the islands of what would become New Zealand ceased to be the preserve of Polynesian navigators and settlers and became a part of both the world’s map and the world’s history.THE MAORI NATIONALIST assault upon the historical meaning ...
Another round of tactical talks about forming a Government of National Unity have come to nothing with the Liberal Democrats still refusing countenance putting Jeremy Corbyn into Downing Street:Opposition talks on Monday made little headway over when to try and vote down Boris Johnson's government and who might succeed him as ...
by Nick Rogers The debate around the meaning of sex and gender made an appearance at this year’s British Labour Party conference in Brighton. Women’s Place UK – an organisation that questions the demand that biological males who self-identify as woman should have access to women’s spaces, to all-women shortlists, ...
Yesterday I went down to Wellington to participate in the Extinction Rebellion protest. Its part of the latest global wave of XR actions, with actions happening all over the world. Some of those protests are massively disruptive: in Canada, XR is blocking major bridges, stopping people from getting to work. ...
The Workshop is a charitable trust for public good. The Workshop undertake research to find ways of communicating that will build support for the solutions that work to solve complex social and environmental problems. See their Report on Talking about Poverty and Welfare Reform below. ...
What is language? We generally assume that it a facility unique to humans, allowing us to share what’s in and on our minds. We can tell of our plans, our past exploits, our knowledge. It also allows us to lie. And yet there are vast numbers of people we can’t ...
Being and Being Bought (Spinifex Press, 2013) by Kajsa Ekis Ekman A synopsis and commentary of Chapters 1-2 by Daphna Whitmore Ekman, a Swedish journalist and critic, brings together a Marxist and feminist analysis of prostitution and surrogacy in this groundbreaking book She opens the discussion with a definition of ...
I make no claims to having much legal knowledge, so I defer to those trained in this area.I am very much enjoying this twitter stream from m'learned friend in Edinburgh, deciphering the legal arguments around the Scottish court challenge to Boris Johnson, based on the charmingly obscure principle of Nobile ...
Ivory Folly? The University of Auckland’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Stuart McCutcheon, upheld the right of the radical nationalist group, Action Zealandia to exercise their freedom of speech – not matter how distasteful that speech might be. A wiser community of students and scholars would have nodded their agreement and moved on. ...
If you are not convinced terrorist Organisation ‘Extinction Rebellion’ is very, very dangerous – watch this video at one of their recent meetings. Not only is this obviously mentally ill Woman begging the other terrorists to promote killing and “eating” babies and children, if you watch carefully other members nod ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters is predicting a hard Brexit for the United Kingdom, as he believes British Prime Minister Boris Johnson won’t be able to negotiate terms before the October 30 deadline. The Minister, who was one of the first to publicly come out and predict British voters would leave ...
Speaking at the Council of Trade Unions' (CTU) biennial conference, New Zealand First leader Winston Peters told unionists that any future attacks on the Government won't work. "Now, we are being attacked by the union movement in this country. You can have your views but I'm here to say standing ...
We want every New Zealander to be happy, safe, and healthy. To do this, we need to support strong, safe communities, and a robust and efficient health system. ...
Defence Minister Ron Mark has used his powers to overrule a noise complaint ruling against Whenuapai airbase on the grounds of "national security". The Environment Court last month released a ruling in favour of a private developer, declaring the Auckland airbase had to comply with noise restrictions when it performs ...
New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has opened fire against "unreconstructed morons" after NZ First MP Shane Jones was photographed on holiday holding an AR-15 rifle. Mr Peters is defending Mr Jones, telling Magic Talk host Peter Williams that his MP was just having fun "like most people do". "The ...
New Zealand First Deputy Leader and Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau was in attendance during the morning blessing of the Rotorua Lakefront development project. Around 60 people gathered on the shores of Lake Rotorua, including city mayor Steve Chadwick and deputy Dave Donaldson. The Lakefront development is a ...
Forestry Minister Shane Jones is considering reining in on conversions of farmland to forestry, and also issued a warning to foreign-owned forestry companies that make up nearly 75 per cent of the industry. He said too many foreign companies had not provided enough access for domestic processors to get timber. ...
Speaking to Radio NZ, New Zealand First leader Winston Peters said the tightening of the parental category visa is a direct result of the Party’s coalition negotiations with the Labour Party. He said the new changes switch the financial onus from the parent moving to New Zealand to the child ...
The Coalition Government is set to cut red tape in the building and construction sector in an effort to allow more houses to be built, including prefabricated houses. The changes will enable the mass factory production of "high quality" buildings, slash the likely number of building inspections for factory produced ...
Since coming into Government, we’ve worked hard to tackle homelessness and make sure everyone has a warm, dry home. And today, on World Homeless Day, we want to report back and update you on our progress so far. ...
New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has hit back at National Party leader Simon Bridges who criticized the Coalition Government’s approach to crime, and said that the latter isn't credible in his attack on the Government over gang recruitment. "We've got as massive drug problem in this country. It is ...
New Zealand Mānuka honey exporters have welcomed an initiative by the Coalition Government to help secure the term “mānuka honey” to be used exclusively by Kiwi exporters, ensuring that our multimillion-dollar industry is protected. Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones had recently announced that a Provincial Growth Funding of $5.7 ...
Political commentator Mike Hosking has labelled New Zealand First leader Winston Peters as “the voice of reason in a government soft on drugs”, for the Party’s stance on drug testing at music festivals. “If common sense is worth a vote, Winston Peters is quids in,” Mr Hosking said. The Labour ...
Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau has announced Provincial Growth Funding to ensure work opportunities in Turangi and Whanganui, through its skills and employment programme, Te Ara Mahi. A fund of $500,000 will go to Rafting NZ in Turangi for a 16-week river guide training course to train ...
Treasury has shown that the Coalition Government has a $7.5 billion surplus, which is $4 billion higher than what was expected in the 2019 Budget unveiled last May. It is also $2 billion higher than the actual surplus unveiled this time last year, and at a size that has not ...
Official Information Act figures released to NZME show there were 350 assaults on officers in the year to the end of June, 79 more than the year before. The increase in attacks have sparked calls for more legal protection for first responders to be enacted. The assaults included officers being ...
“Nobody wants to see babies uplifted”, this was the pronouncement of Minister for Children Hon. Tracey Martin as her department, Oranga Tamariki, faces multiple inquiries into the number of babies being taken from their families. “But a baby can die with a single punch, “the Minister continued. “So sometimes, Oranga ...
We're making progress on tackling the long-term challenges: from homelessness, to strengthening border security, to bringing banking back New Zealand's small towns. ...
Associate Transport Minister Shane Jones has backed the ambitious plan to move Auckland’s port to Northport, at Whangarei harbour, which he says will be the “King Kong of infrastructure”. The plan is part of the recommendations of a six-person independent working group, which has recommended the Ports of Auckland be ...
A six-member independent working group selected the option of moving Auckland’s port to Northport, in Whangarei, ahead of other options. In what could be New Zealand’s most ambitious infrastructure project yet, a major expansion of the Marsden Point port could happen within 15 years. The project, officially called the “Upper ...
The final Electricity Price Review recommended prohibiting prompt payment discounts but allowing “reasonable” late fees. The findings of this review was welcomed by the Coalition Government, but they hope companies will follow through with its recommendations without regulations needed to be passed. Meridian Energy had already stopped prompt payment discounts, ...
Fletcher Tabuteau, Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF)through its skills and employment programme, Te Ara Mahi,will invest nearly $600,000 to ensure work opportunities for locals in Turangia and Whanganui, Parliamentary Under Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau announced today. “I’m pleased to announce the PGF ...
An export-led economy is one of New Zealand First’s key principles, and our commitment to achieving this is shown by the continuing skyrocketing demand for our beef and sheep meat exports. Beef + Lamb New Zealand's New Season Outlook 2019-20 report forecasts beef, lamb and mutton prices to lift from ...
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today in Gisborne an investment of $17.27m into bringing “world-leading” food-growing technology and the creation of more than 100 new jobs in the East Coast city. The funding comes from the Provincial Growth Fund, and included a $15 million loan to LeaderBrand, a ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development More than 100 people in Tairāwhiti’s Tolaga Bay will benefit from two employment initiatives supported by the Provincial Growth Fund, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones and Employment Minister Willie Jackson announced today. “Tolaga Bay is an incredibly tight-knit community, but one in ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is supporting Gisborne business Leaderbrand to produce salad vegetables year round and create more jobs in the Tairāwhiti region, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today. “Our support for Leaderbrand will help them build large greenhouses ...
“Nobody wants to see babies uplifted”, this was the pronouncement of Minister for Children Hon. Tracey Martin as her department, Oranga Tamariki, faces multiple inquiries into the number of babies being taken from their families. “But a baby can die with a single punch, “the Minister continued. “So sometimes, Oranga ...
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones has praised the promise by New Zealand’s biggest banks not to close any provincial branches while the Coalition Government trials regional banking hubs across the country. The Minister said the announce was the “first sign of hope for regional communities”, many of which have ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, New Zealand First Leader New Zealand First is proud to have delivered an upgrade of the SuperGold Card website and a new smartphone app, which will help unlock the full benefits of the SuperGold Card for 750,000 New Zealand seniors.Party Leader Rt Hon Winston Peters, ...
Delivering a key election campaign promise, New Zealand First is proud to have accomplished a long overdue upgrade of the SuperGold Card today. At an event in Auckland, New Zealand First leader Winston Peters joined Minister for Seniors Hon. Tracey Martin in unveiling the new website and smartphone app which ...
Government Ministers today welcomed the release of a marine environment report highlighting the four key issues affecting our oceans, estuaries and coastlines. The release underlines the importance of government proposals to combat climate pollution, ensure clean freshwater, protect biodiversity, make land use more sustainable, and reduce waste and plastic. Environment ...
The Government has approved funding for a new acute mental health facility for Waikato which will provide better care and support to people with mental health and addiction issues. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Health Minister Dr David Clark announced the $100 million project to replace the aging Henry Rongomau ...
The Government is making progress on its goal to integrate te reo Māori into education by 2025, with over 500 teachers and support staff already graduating from Te Ahu o te Reo Māori, Associate Education Minister Kelvin Davis announced today. Kelvin Davis made the announcement at an awards ceremony in Waikanae today, for ...
Statistics Minister James Shaw has welcomed the first release of 2018 Census data. The first release of data today, 23 September, includes key data on population, regional growth, the number of homes and the size of different ethnic groups in New Zealand. Data from the 2018 Census will support the ...
Minister for Statistics James Shaw today announced a public consultation on a proposed algorithm charter for government agencies. The charter has been developed by the Government Chief Data Steward in response to growing calls for more transparency in government use of data. Computer algorithms – procedures or formulas for solving ...
Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor, Climate Change Minister James Shaw and visiting Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte co-hosted a business roundtable in Auckland this morning focused on working together to address climate change. “The Netherlands is an important partner for New Zealand. We share a strong agricultural history. Sustainable agribusiness and ...
The Government is taking action to build an inclusive economy where more of us receive our fair share at work and businesses can compete on great products and services, not undercutting wages and conditions, Immigration and Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Iain Lees-Galloway says. Two consultations launched today seek feedback ...
The future for New Zealand’s threatened indigenous freshwater fish looks brighter with the passing of the Conservation (Indigenous Freshwater Fish) Amendment Bill in Parliament today said Minister of Conservation, Eugenie Sage. “Until now, our freshwater fish legislation has been 20 years out of date. We have lacked effective tools to ...
At 1.30pm tomorrow, hundreds of thousands of Kiwis will join about 65 million people around the globe in ShakeOut, the world’s biggest earthquake drill. The annual drill is to remind people of the right action to take during an earthquake which is to Drop, Cover, Hold, and to practise their ...
Kiwis are benefiting from higher wage growth and low inflation under the Coalition Government. Stats NZ data out today shows the rise in the cost of living remains low, as annual Consumers Price Index (CPI) inflation fell to 1.5% in September from 1.7% in June. “The low inflation comes as ...
New Zealand’s economic strength and resilience has been recognised in a major update on the state of the global economy. The IMF’s latest World Economic Outlook released overnight shows a reduced global growth forecast over the next two years as issues like the US-China trade war and Brexit take hold. ...
Justice Minister Andrew Little has today introduced a new Bill to prevent terrorism and support the de-radicalisation of New Zealanders returning from overseas. The Terrorism Suppression (Control Orders) Bill gives the New Zealand Police the ability to apply to the High Court to impose control orders on New Zealanders who ...
A Bill that proposes targeted changes to simplify the processes for Māori land owners when engaging with the Māori Land Court has had its First Reading today. “The approach taken by the Government is to ensure that the protection of Māori land remains a priority as we seek to improve ...
Let me first thank all the new unionists and members in the room. There is nothing more important to improving people’s working lives than people making the decision to care, to get on board and help, to take up the reins and get involved. Congratulations to you. You bring the ...
Minister of Defence Ron Mark has signed a certificate exempting the activity of engine testing at Whenuapai Airbase from the Resource Management Act 1991. The Act gives the Minister of Defence the power to exempt activities for the purposes of national security. The certificate will mean the recent Environment Court ...
Finance Minister Grant Robertson has announced New Zealand will join the Coalition of Finance Ministers for Climate Action while attending APEC meetings in Chile. The objective of the 39 member Coalition is to share information and promote action to tackle climate change. It was formed in April this year, in ...
Ladies and gentlemen, NZCTU President Richard Wagstaff, members of respective unions – thank you for the invitation to speak to you today. This might be preaching to the choir, but the importance of trade unions in New Zealand’s historical arch is difficult to understate. And it is my belief that ...
"Let’s start by acknowledging that it has been a huge year. " Police Association Annual Conference James Cook Grand Chancellor Hotel Wellington Nau mai, haere mai. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, ka nui te mihi, ki a koutou katoa. President of the Police Association, Chris Cahill; Members of the Association and ...
Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters and Minister of Defence Ron Mark have announced the New Zealand Government’s decision to again deploy a Royal New Zealand Air Force P-3K2 (P-3) maritime patrol aircraft to support the implementation of United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions imposing sanctions against North Korea. New ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters says New Zealand continues to have serious concerns for peace and stability in north-east Syria. “Recent reports that hundreds of ISIS-affiliated families have fled from a camp are deeply concerning from a humanitarian and security perspective”, Mr Peters says. “While we acknowledge Turkey’s domestic security ...
Biosecurity Minister Damien O’Connor is warning travelling Kiwis to be vigilant as the high-season for the crop-eating brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB) is under way. “We’re on high alert to stop BMSB arriving in NZ. The high season runs until April 30 and we’ve strengthened our measures to stop stink ...
The Government is moving swiftly to change the law to improve the welfare and pastoral care of students living in university halls of residence and other tertiary hostels. Cabinet has agreed to several changes, including creating a new mandatory Code of Practice that sets out the duty of pastoral care ...
The Minister for Conservation Eugenie Sage has launched a new comprehensive trapping guide for community trappers to help them protect our native birds, plants and other wildlife, at Zealandia in Wellington today. ‘A practical guide to trapping’, has been developed by the Department of Conservation (DOC), and was launched during ...
Associate Health Minister Julie Anne Genter welcomes PHARMAC’s move to improve access to long-acting reversible contraception (LARCs). PHARMAC has today announced it will fund the full cost of Mirena and Jaydess for anyone seeking long term contraception, lifting previous restrictions on access to Mirena. “I welcome women having greater choices ...
The Government has approved the next stage of a major redevelopment of Taranaki Base Hospital, which will deliver new and improved facilities for patients. Health Minister Dr David Clark has announced details of a $300 million dollar project to build a new East Wing at the New Plymouth hospital. It ...
Extra funding will allow Rural Support Trusts to help farming families, says Minister for Rural Communities and Agriculture Damien O’Connor. “I know that rural families are worried about some of the challenges facing them, including the ongoing uncertainty created by the Mycoplasma bovis outbreak. “Those concerns sit alongside ongoing worries ...
Thank you for the opportunity to be here to present certificates to the 16 graduates who have completed a beekeeping course delivered by the Howard League. Let us start by acknowledging Auckland Prison’s Deputy Prison Director Tom Sherlock, and Acting Assistant Regional Commissioner of Corrections Northern Region Scott Walker - ...
Finance Minister Grant Robertson leaves this weekend to attend the APEC Finance Ministers meeting in Santiago, Chile. Discussions between APEC Finance Ministers at the meeting will include the effects of the current global economic uncertainty, risks for APEC economies and sustainable development of the region. While at APEC Grant Robertson ...
The Minister for Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio says for Pacific people, language can be a source of strength. It can help ground us and give us confidence. When we speak them, our languages provide us with an immediate and intimate access to our identity and our story - and ...
The Coalition Government has announced an action plan to improve the wellbeing of disabled New Zealanders by addressing inequalities in play, active recreation and sport. The initiative includes training to develop a workforce that understands the needs of children and young people with a range of impairments, advocacy for fit ...
The construction sector is being freed up to allow more homes to be built more quickly as the Government cuts through some of the red tape of the Building Act. “Every New Zealander deserves a warm, dry, safe home and old inefficiencies in the Building Act make building slow and ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has welcomed further details on the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall’s visit to New Zealand next month. Their Royal Highnesses will visit New Zealand from 17-23 November – their third joint visit to New Zealand and first in four years. They arrive in Auckland ...
Minister of State for Trade and Export Growth and Minister of Agriculture, Damien O’Connor, heads to Thailand today to attend the final Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Ministerial meeting, as negotiations enter their final stages. “The RCEP Agreement would anchor New Zealand in a regional agreement that covers 16 countries, ...
Pacific young people living in the Hawke’s Bay, Southland and Otago regions will have access to support services that have proved successful in helping young people find new earning and learning opportunities. “Tupu Aotearoa is about changing Pacific young peoples’ lives. Our young people are talented, they are smart, they ...
Introduction As the Minister for ACC I thank you all for the work that you do supporting New Zealanders in their literally most vulnerable moments. From those who hold people’s lives in their hands, to the people who research technique, technology and trends, your work is highly valued. A special ...
Notes prepared for speeches in Christchurch – Wednesday 9 October 2019 Today’s topic, “trends and opportunities for the New Zealand economy,” is certainly one getting a great deal of commentary at the moment. Looking across the media landscape lately you’ll notice we aren’t the only ones having this discussion. There ...
Minister of Health Dr David Clark and Associate Minister of Health Peeni Henare say this year’s World Mental Health Day theme is a reminder of why the Government’s work on mental health is so important. “This year the World Federation for Mental Health has made suicide prevention the main theme ...
Associate Arts, Culture and Heritage Minister Carmel Sepuloni will represent the government at Australia’s Meeting of Cultural Ministers in Adelaide this week. “This year’s meeting is special because New Zealand is expected to become an International Member of the Meeting of Cultural Ministers at this Australian forum,” Carmel Sepuloni said. “The meeting is an opportunity to ...
The Greater Christchurch Claims Resolution Service has resolved 608 insurance and EQC claims in its first year in operation, Minister Megan Woods has announced. The government service, which celebrates its first birthday today, provides a one stop shop to help Cantabrians still battling to get their homes repaired or rebuilt ...
Today’s topic, “trends and opportunities for the New Zealand economy,” is certainly one getting a great deal of commentary at the moment. Looking across the media landscape lately you’ll notice we aren’t the only ones having this discussion. There has been an increasing amount of attention paid to the outlook ...
The proposition that global warming driven by greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is a risk that needs to be dealt with has achieved a large measure of agreement among policymakers. The proposition that it has to be dealt with right now and at great cost has no such consensus.One point ...
A bill to improve the pastoral care of students living in halls of residence has flown through its first reading in Parliament, thanks to cross-party support. ...
In this week's MediaRoom column: could MediaWorks close its TV operations altogether? And the Herald restructures its newsroom to remove a layer of management and shake up its investigative team. ...
Twenty-five young people who represent the future of the Asia-New Zealand relationship have been acknowledged as ‘ones to watch’, by the Asia New Zealand Foundation Te Whītau Tūhono. ...
The taboo that surrounds immigration and our refugee qouta, are two issues rising in New Zealand that need to start being given attention to challenge the fruit loops of the far left. ...
Winston Peters has been ordered to answer questions about whether he received a letter from MSD asking him to check details of his living arrangements, three years before discovering he'd been overpaid. ...
To celebrate 10 years since the start of New Zealand’s Next Top Model, our reality TV podcast The Real Pod is going to recap it week by week. Here are 10 of the most incredible revelations from the very first episode. 1) Colin Mathura-Jeffree was an emo kidThis was the moment ...
Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.New Zealand Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand.Today’s content by Dr Bryce Edwards.Terrorism bill Lydia Lewis and Dan Satherley (Newshub): Security expert backs new terror law proposal ...
Occupiers of the disputed land at Ihumātao have been shut out of talks with the government about finding a resolution, saying they haven’t had any direct contact with ministers in more than a month, writes RNZ‘s Te Aniwa Hurihanganu and Meriana Johnsen.The Māori King announced in September mana whenua had ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bronwyn Fancourt, Adjunct Research Fellow, University of New England Feral cats are wreaking havoc on our native wildlife, eating more than a billion animals across Australia every year. But managing feral cats and reducing their impacts on our threatened species is challenging, ...
Later this month, the national commemoration of the New Zealand Wars, known as Te Pūtake o Te Riri, is to be held in Taranaki. Local community activist Vivian Hutchinson looks at how a history of conflict has shaped our sense of citizenship and describes how some people in Taranaki are ...
New Zealand First MP Clayton Mitchell is demanding an apology from security guards who booted him out of a Tauranga bar on Saturday night, describing them as politically-motivated "buffoons". ...
New Zealand First MP Clayton Mitchell is demanding an apology from security guards who booted him out of a Tauranga bar on Saturday night, describing them as politically-motivated "buffoons". ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jerry Zhou, Lecturer, School of Medicine, Western Sydney University If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to curiouskids@theconversation.edu.au.Does chewing gum stay inside you for years? – Olivia, aged 12, Australia. Great question, Olivia! ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Liam Elphick, Adjunct Research Fellow, Law School, University of Western Australia In March last year, Frances McDormand won the Academy Award for Best Actress. In her acceptance speech, she drew attention to the female nominees in the room and left them with ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peggy Kern, Associate professor, University of Melbourne The Portal follows six individuals who undergo a personal transformation from trauma and struggle to calmness, self-acceptance, and compassion towards others. These personal changes are intertwined with contemplations about the broader struggles facing humanity and ...
Many hill country farmers could be locked into low-return agriculture by government policy, with little chance of breaking the cycle, according to the main meat producers' lobby, Beef + Lamb New Zealand. ...
The Southern DHB has apologised and pledged to change practices after a report into a young woman’s complaint about treatment which included being stripped naked and left unattended in seclusion for 12 hours. Here she tells her story.I’d forgotten the Health and Disability Commission was about to publish its report. ...
In the Chief Ombudsman’s latest Annual Report, contacts for advice increased 29 percent, while more use was being made of guidance material, including the 23 new or updated guides that were published in the 2018/19 year. ...
Fletcher's new offsite home manufacturing facility could be producing two homes a day within a couple of years. But for the moment this high-tech factory is underwhelming. ...
National's leader Simon Bridges says his party will pull its support for the new anti-terrorism legislation if the minister doesn't meet with them next week and start negotiating in good faith. ...
For the latest episode of On the Rag, notorious prude Alex Casey enlisted the help of sex toy expert and pleasure therapist Teddy Curle. It sounds a bit like ingredients for an avant-garde stir-fry recipe. Cauliflower. Kūmara. A jar of Vegemite. But what it actually is, sex toy expert Teddy Curle ...
It is deeply concerning that the state of our marine environment has not improved in the last three years. Resilient coasts and oceans are essential to New Zealanders' health and wealth, so urgent action is needed to address the decline. ...
Something’s crowning this Christmas, and it isn’t King Richard of Aldovia in his favourite tiara. Tara Ward looks at what Netflix’s new movie A Christmas Prince: A Royal Baby could mean for us all. Yesterday Netflix announced they’re about to give birth to the third instalment in the legendary series A Christmas ...
In a new initiative, Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga (NPM) New Zealand’s Māori Centre of Research Excellence is celebrating and recognising the careers of three Māori leaders and visionaries, who have a long history of bringing about major social change ...
The Environmental Defence Society (EDS) has welcomed the publication by the Ministry for the Environment and Stats NZ of Our Marine Environment 2019 , the latest in the reports on the state of our environment. The report is available here . ...
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand. This week he talks to Campbell Brown, CEO of PredictHQ.This week we talk to Campbell Brown, the CEO ...
The Government has today released its discussion paper ‘ Designing a Fair Pay Agreements System ’ providing detail of what proposed law for Fair Pay Agreements (FPAs) could include. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Leah Ruppanner, Associate Professor in Sociology and Co-Director of The Policy Lab, University of Melbourne The polls were wrong in the last US and Australian federal elections. Hillary Clinton was favoured to win at a margin of 85% to Donald Trump’s 15%. ...
Today is World Ecolabel Day and to mark the occasion New Zealand’s premier ecolabel has released a study showing the powerful environmental effect of ecolabelled products. ...
Family First's continued fight against attempts by the government's Charities Registration Board to deregister them is set to continue in the Court of Appeal in Wellington next week (Tues & Wed 22-23 Oct). In a significant development, the Charity Law ...
The actions of New Zealanders on land are increasingly harming the ocean’s ability to sustain life. Alex Braae looks at a worrying new government paper on the marine environment.What’s all this then?A new report from the Ministry for the Environment and Stats NZ has sounded alarming warning about state of ...
Farmers for Positive Change (F4PC) congratulates environmental, recreation and public health groups for coming to a united position on the Government’s freshwater reform and finds significant areas of agreement with the Healthy Water, Healthy Future joint ...
In time for Auckland Artweek, Eloise Callister-Baker opens the door on a cluster of small Auckland art spaces, once off the beaten track and ephemeral, now finding cunning new ways to adapt and survive in the CBD property market. Auckland’s terrific documentor of art openings, Sait Akkirman of artdiary.co.nz, provides ...
Right to Life asks, why the Special Abortion Legislation Bill Committee is continuing to discriminate by refusing to hear the 2,740 submitters who have requested the right to make a ten minute oral submission on the highly contentious abortion Bill conceived ...
Winston Peters is calling on an old mate to give evidence in his landmark court case against government agencies over a leak of his personal superannuation details. ...
Government ministers are exulting over how the NZ economy is performing— and their own work in making it stronger. David Clark, standing in for Grant Robertson in Parliament on Tuesday, rejoiced at how solid the “underlying fundamentals of the NZ economy are”. He said the government accounts for the June ...
A campaign to ban the Forced Swim Test in New Zealand is in line with public opinion, according to a new survey commissioned by the New Zealand Anti-Vivisection Society (NZAVS) and SAFE. ...
Environment, health, recreation, and water infrastructure groups have come together to support four essential policies to save fresh water in Aotearoa New Zealand. The Public Health Association, Forest & Bird, Fish & Game New Zealand, Environmental ...
"So many of our children are being violently harmed. Their innocence stolen and their bodies used for the sexual gratification and financial gain of those involved in the dark world of paedophillia. These innocent children are voiceless; nobody ...
There must be consternation within the upper ranks of the Labour Party at the performance of some of the Ministers in the coalition government. Every time the government looks like making some positive progress, one or other of these errant Ministers can be ...
Responding to Massey University’s decision to cancel the upcoming ‘Feminism 2020’ event, Free Speech Coalition member Melissa Derby (who had been scheduled to speak at the event) says: ...
New Zealand First's youth wing is at odds with leader Winston Peters over pill-testing at festivals and is working to overturn the party's position. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Byron, Lecturer in Psychology, University of Wollongong I am in year 11 and I like to listen to music when I am studying, but my dad says that my brain is spending only half of its time studying and the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Philippa England, Senior Lecturer, Griffith Law School, Griffith University Good planning needs integrity, and public participation should play a role in that. But a row over a high-rise development proposed for suburban Brisbane shows what happens when the public feels left out ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Frank Mathmann, Lecturer (Assistant Professor), Queensland University of Technology When you wander down most supermarket aisles are you befuddled by too much choice? Do you feel overwhelmed when comparing new phone deals, insurance offers, energy provider plans? There’s a lot of research ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Philip C. Almond, Emeritus Professor in the History of Religious Thought, The University of Queensland In a speech in Albury last month, Prime Minister Scott Morrison told his audience that he was praying for rain in drought-affected areas. “I pray for that ...
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Prefab housing factory opened amid huge need, worrying new measles developments, and public shows common sense on drug testing.A new factory has been opened to produce building materials, which if scaled up could have a significant impact on construction time ...
The Police Association says the Police Minister will be breaking his promise if he doesn't include staff turnover in the government's police staffing target. ...
Black Fern Vania Wolfgramm has been given a golden opportunity to learn from leaders in US sport, and in return, make a lasting contribution to Kiwi female athletes. ...
A symposium to mark the 50th anniversary of the formation of Halt All Racist Tours shook and changed our society, taking NZ into a new and different national and international consciousness. ...
When Hannah Yang complained about a racist clue in the daily paper, she was reminded of the prevalence of casual racism in New Zealand.I’d never seen a racist clue before.It happened in the morning when I sat down in our break room to look at the day’s cryptic crossword (yes, ...
The commentary around local election turnout is littered with misunderstanding. Yes, there’s a problem, but we should regard any suggestion of a single, simple solution with deep suspicion, writes local elections expert Julienne MolineauxThe Spinoff local election coverage is made possible thanks to The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming ...
Alex Casey talks to Henessey Griffiths, a 22 year-old Dunedin student who just finished her dissertation about one of Youtube’s most controversial stars. Content warning: this article contains mention of suicide, please take careYesterday afternoon in Dunedin, honours student Henessey Griffiths sent a tweet that was a year (or rather, five ...
The Transport Minister has released almost all of the letters he's received from Green MPs, but still refuses to release the letter from Julie Anne Genter that is now at the centre of an Ombudsman complaint. ...
Court documents have confirmed Winston Peters was sent a letter by officials four years into his seven-year overpayment of national superannuation asking him to check details he had supplied, including that he was 'single'. ...
Olympic sailors Blair Tuke and Peter Burling are throwing their weight behind a campaign encouraging New Zealander consumers and businesses to reduce their plastic pollution. ...
National Party leader Simon Bridges says his MP Agnes Loheni let him know she'd be contesting the candidacy for Botany, adding it's a "free world". ...
Open Mike 28/02/2016 
Open mike is your post.
Jo Swinson is doing even worse at this Being Sensible lark that I'd thought. I've just become aware of the following utterance
Today's IPCA report of police criminality: a police officer unalwfully tasered a fleeing suspect who posed no threat to anyone:The police watchdog has found an officer unlawfully tasered an Auckland man who broke his ankle jumping off a balcony to escape arrest. [...] To avoid arrest, the man jumped over ...10 hours ago
Media Statement for Immediate Release 16th October 2019 “Fake News” from Auckland City Council CCOs Board Chairs re pay and performance bonuses for top managers Despite comments from Auckland City Council CCOs Board Chairs re pay and performance bonuses for top managers—Herald Newspaper Tuesday Oct 15th–there is very little evidence ...11 hours ago
Would You Buy A Used Propaganda Video From This Man? Bridges and the National Party’s strategists have discovered that the ideas and attitudes considered acceptable by today’s editors and journalists are no longer enforceable. The rise and rise of the Internet and the social media platforms it spawned means that ...12 hours ago
John MacCormick Over the last 40 years, New Zealanders – and people in other countries – have experienced big changes in the jobs they do and where they live and work. These changes include: a decline in manufacturing jobs an increase in jobs in ‘information-intensive’ industries (which are better paid ...13 hours ago
Climate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, please send it to climate.change@stuff.co.nz There is a lot of discussion on the benefits of ...2 days ago
Thanks to a report from the Acting Inspector General of Intelligence and Security following a complaint by Nicky Hager, we have come to find out that the SIS illegally spied on Mr. Hager on behalf of the NZDF after publication of Hager’s 2011 book, Other People’s Wars. The NZDF justified ...2 days ago
COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT GLOBAL WARMING MYTH 1: Global temperatures are rising at a rapid, unprecedented rate. FACT: The HadCRUT3 surface temperature index, produced by the Hadley Centre of the UK Met Office and the Climate Research Unit of the University of East Anglia, shows warming to 1878, cooling to 1911, ...2 days ago
The Royal Commission on abuse in care is very significant for the disability community. For many decades last century, thousands of disabled children, and adults who managed to survive, were locked away from families and communities. This was not for anything they had done, but for the perceived threat their ...3 days ago
More than double the number of people who will vote in this year’s local body elections have tried marijuana or urinated somewhere they shouldn’t have. As local elections look set for the lowest turnout in decades, with many regions falling well short of 40%, the Government is exploring a number ...6 days ago
“There can be no such thing as kaupapa Māori political parties or politics in Aotearoa” (Willie Jackson, Labour Party (2017). Māori TV, General/List Election Special) I begin with that claim because at the time, I was confounded at first that it fell out of Willie Jackson’s mouth, and then ...1 week ago
Foreign Minister Winston Peters is predicting a hard Brexit for the United Kingdom, as he believes British Prime Minister Boris Johnson won’t be able to negotiate terms before the October 30 deadline. The Minister, who was one of the first to publicly come out and predict British voters would leave ...1 day ago
We want every New Zealander to be happy, safe, and healthy. To do this, we need to support strong, safe communities, and a robust and efficient health system. ...2 days ago
Government Ministers today welcomed the release of a marine environment report highlighting the four key issues affecting our oceans, estuaries and coastlines. The release underlines the importance of government proposals to combat climate pollution, ensure clean freshwater, protect biodiversity, make land use more sustainable, and reduce waste and plastic. Environment ...6 hours ago
E tū members in cleaning and security are welcoming the Government’s call for consultation on the development of Fair Pay Agreements. ...3 hours ago
A bill to improve the pastoral care of students living in halls of residence has flown through its first reading in Parliament, thanks to cross-party support. ...3 hours ago
In this week's MediaRoom column: could MediaWorks close its TV operations altogether? And the Herald restructures its newsroom to remove a layer of management and shake up its investigative team. ...3 hours ago
Judith Collins is filling the blackhole that is National’s climate policy with social media posts appealing to science deniers. ...4 hours ago
To celebrate 10 years since the start of New Zealand’s Next Top Model, our reality TV podcast The Real Pod is going to recap it week by week. Here are 10 of the most incredible revelations from the very first episode. 1) Colin Mathura-Jeffree was an emo kidThis was the moment ...5 hours ago
Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.
A Tom Sainsbury snapchat celebrating the genius of Dan Brown. ...9 hours ago
Many hill country farmers could be locked into low-return agriculture by government policy, with little chance of breaking the cycle, according to the main meat producers' lobby, Beef + Lamb New Zealand. ...9 hours ago
Sky Television's shareholders have approved its deal to retain the Sanzaar rugby rights for an undisclosed sum, making it unconditional. ...10 hours ago
Fletcher's new offsite home manufacturing facility could be producing two homes a day within a couple of years. But for the moment this high-tech factory is underwhelming. ...10 hours ago
Principals nervously wait for the final outcomes of the biggest education system review in 30 years. ...17 hours ago
The Second Fleet was reactivated to patrol the Arctic. Only problem is, the fleet’s home is on the front lines of sea-level rise. ...19 hours ago
Mildly dyslexic Sportsroom editor Steve Deane breaks down the keys to victory for the All Blacks in their World Cup quarterfinal against Ireland. ...19 hours ago
Black Fern Vania Wolfgramm has been given a golden opportunity to learn from leaders in US sport, and in return, make a lasting contribution to Kiwi female athletes. ...19 hours ago
A symposium to mark the 50th anniversary of the formation of Halt All Racist Tours shook and changed our society, taking NZ into a new and different national and international consciousness. ...19 hours ago
What happens when an historic air base that used to be well out of Auckland finds the city has grown up around it? ...19 hours ago
Court documents have confirmed Winston Peters was sent a letter by officials four years into his seven-year overpayment of national superannuation asking him to check details he had supplied, including that he was 'single'. ...1 day ago
An ambitious target for new officers seems to have turned into a cynical redefinition - how will police take the news? ...1 day ago
Olympic sailors Blair Tuke and Peter Burling are throwing their weight behind a campaign encouraging New Zealander consumers and businesses to reduce their plastic pollution. ...1 day ago
I have been trying to get my head around the full implications of the TPPA in general terms.
Reluctantly, I have heard myself beginning to sound like a conspiracy theorist!
These are my conclusions – please shoot them down!
As is obvious, I am not talking detail here, but broad generalisations.
1 – that there is a conspiracy by the 1% elite to financially enslave the world. They have so many more resources than the ‘man in the street’ and a unity of purpose which is beyond the grasp of the ordinary person. The recent meeting in Davos is a case in point. What better time for the elite to meet over cups of coffee or martinis and discuss the future direction of their corporate world? That over 600 CEOs had an input into the terms of the agreement, and that it was negotiated in almost complete secrecy, are red flags that we should have heeded.
http://www.marxist.com/the-1-and-the-99-tiny-rich-elite-own-half-the-worlds-wealth.htm
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/jan/19/davos-super-rich-wealth-inequality
2 – that TPPA and its brother treaties TTIP and TISA will impose a further level of governance on the countries which sign into the agreements. This will come in the form of the so-called chilling effect of potential law suits through ISDS. As one commentator said, the Legislative Council was abolished in 1951 – now it appears to be coming back as a supra-national corporate overseer. As someone else suggested, our parliament may become ‘middle-level managers,’ able to change small matters, but always deferring upwards to the corporates on major issues.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0jCqd-MWrA (audio)
https://tpplegal.files.wordpress.com/2015/12/tpp-treaty-process.pdf Read the key points
3 – that TPPA is not at all about free trade but about controlled or managed trade. Certainly, many tariffs have been eliminated but the projected benefits take years to come into effect – and may be supposed to be open to ‘unforseen’ events which might nullify those benefits. In other words, the TPPA is, in terms of trade, frankly, a poor deal.
https://tpplegal.files.wordpress.com/2015/12/tpp-economics.pdf Read the key points
4 – that climate change hardly gets a mention. How can it be possible to sign a ‘trade’ agreement which does not attempt at least to grapple with the greatest threat facing mankind? There appears to be no money to be made in saving the planet! Corporates, with a myopic narrowness of vision on profit, can’t see the bleaker larger picture. For this reason alone TPPA should be rejected!
https://tpplegal.files.wordpress.com/2015/12/tpp-environment.pdf Read the key points
Finally, I find myself looking almost with longing to an event which might overtake all these negotiations and signings: the coming global financial collapse. When the house of cards that is the neoliberal economic structure finally falls, there may be an opportunity, like with FDRs New Deal in 1932, and the election of the Labour Party in 1935, to radically sweep the elite out of existence (in the nicest possible way, of course) and return this country to the people.
The Norwegians did it! http://www.commondreams.org/views/2012/01/26/how-swedes-and-norwegians-broke-power-1-percent
But what a hell of a thing (a world-wide depression) to wish for!
http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/archives/22-signs-that-the-global-economic-turmoil-we-have-seen-so-far-in-2016-is-just-the-beginning
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-67ifpdMps (30 mins – especially gloomy!)
+1 Tony Veitch
would only take issue with point 4….the elites have not missed the larger bleaker picture due to a myopic focus on profit…..the elites are more aware than the general population of the impacts of climate change and seek to use that profit and position to insulate themselves at the cost of the many. In a world of diminishing resources and increasing risks their actions are Darwinian
As the “lifeboats” become increasingly overloaded their army of useful fools will be cast overboard as required.
+1
Wondering about those Roadshows:
From “Its Our Future: “Warning: These Roadshows are not likely to be useful lobbying events. The government officials are going there to talk at us, not to listen. There will be opportunities to influence those who attend, particularly business people who are there, and it is important that we counter their spin. We will do a Q&A on http://www.itsourfuture.org.nz to help counter the usual government spin, and will update it after the Auckland roadshow….Protest! There will be protests at these roadshows – for information on TPPA events see FB pages for Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin and information on the Take Action page at It’s Our Future.”
There is nothing about the Roadshows, in particular the 11th March event in Christchurch, at which I plan to protest, on the Take Action page – or if there is, I couldn’t find it.
I need to know the time, so I can be there!
The roadshows seem to be fullday events, so hopefully the protests will be likewise 9am to 5pm:
https://www.tpp.mfat.govt.nz/assets/docs/TPP%20roadshows%20programme.pdf
Thank you Tony V. A great contribution and worthy of a post in its own right.
I agree with almost all your conclusions.
Part of the story should also include the work of Naomi Klein and her book Shock Doctrine, which explains how disasters have been used to further the corporate governance of the world.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shock_Doctrine
I think the elite are aware of climate change and a part of their solution is to have lifeboats like New Zealand ready if and when things turn to custard and their Patriot Acts, TPPA, surveillance laws and other control techniques fail to manage an enraged population. It would explain why such energy has been put into making this country such a slavish follower of the neo-liberal doctrine.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2931325/Super-rich-buying-property-New-Zealand-bolthole-case-west-goes-meltdown.html
Finally, we should not be scared to use the word conspiracy. The powerful and their useful idiots use the word because they don’t want us to question the status quo.
‘According to John Ayoto’s 20th century words, the phrase “conspiracy theory” was originally a neutral term and only acquired a pejorative connotation in the mid 1960s, implying that the advocate of the theory has a paranoid tendency to imagine the influence of some powerful, malicious, covert agency in events. According to Florida State University professor Lance deHaven-Smith’s 2013 book Conspiracy Theory in America, the phrase “conspiracy theory” was invented in the 1960s by the CIA to discredit JFK assassination conspiracy theories. ‘
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conspiracy_theory#Pejorative_meaning
Comments yesterday on the post about ACT’s climate change policy reminded me of an (unpublished) letter to the editor I wrote in Sept 2014.
“Many have commented on the vagueness of John Key and the tax cuts. National are just as vague about their climate change policy. I hadn’t heard much on National’s climate change policy, so I googled it today and got 2 hits. First was a page of press releases from Tim Groser, a link took me to a list of 36 policies, but not climate change. The second hit went to a National campaign page which said “our plan is focused on 4 key areas”. Climate change was not mentioned. There was no ‘search ’ function for me to find out more.”
National completely ignored climate change in the 2014 election and the MSM completely ignored it too. Maybe things will be different in 2017? 2020? 2032?
I think the Natz unofficial climate change policy is to ignore climate change. They don’t want to upset the voters (after seeing how many were at the march) but since they have signed TPPA they don’t have to worry – as Tony Veitch has concluded – “As someone else suggested, our parliament may become ‘middle-level managers,’ able to change small matters, but always deferring upwards to the corporates on major issues.” Good excuse not to do anything.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/celebrities/77263068/guy-williams-lets-scrap-the-labour-party-and-start-again
Interestingly I’m guessing theres more then a few lefties on here that probably agree with him…
Chris 73 is just trying to railroad the excellent discussion started by Tony V above – take no notice of him ……. nor of the silly nonsense whoever guy williams is – just so silly its not worth repeating or even reading.
Its nothing to do with Tony V, I posted it here because its amusing but that you don’t know who Guy Williams is really does illustrate just how out of touch the left is with mainstream NZ
Guy Williams , Main Stream NZ????? Nah!!!
He is another hard to laugh at so called NZ comedian. Why would anybody with an interest in politics be at all interested in his drivel.
Well hes in a number of popular (and not so popular) shows both TV and radio so he has access to a large of number of people and he majored in political science so hes probably as qualified as most to speak on politics
Plus the article is amusing and thats the most important thing
The Labour Party was founded on 19th century concepts and ideals. Mostly around workers versus capital.
By the ’50s and ’60s Labour had largely accomplished everything they had originally set out to do.
Since then they have been floundering around trying to make up new goals, given up on following through their old goals to completion, and generally backing a new pro-ruling class status quo.
What purpose is Labour fit for now? They’ve accomplished as much major change as they could by the 50s and 60s, in the 1980s they undid large parts of it, and now, who knows? Round and round in circles.
Yes a distraction by a rwnj
Yes dear
I thought this was the Open Mike thread, where anyone can start a discussion on anything they choose. It’s actually not possible to railroad any discussion given the design of this website.
Who Guy Williams is, is irrelevant. I don’t care if he’s the local milkman, It’s what he says that’s important and I agree with his appraisal of Labour.
I also believe the local milkman’s opinion is as valid as anyones.
And c73 comes to this site to engage in meaningful debate
And there you’d be wrong. Opinions are only valid when they’re based upon fact. If they’re not then they’re obviously of no value.
It’s got nothing to do with being the milkman or any body else. For that matter, NZ never used to disregard what people said based upon what they did for a living and we were better off because of it.
” Opinions are only valid when they’re based upon fact. If they’re not then they’re obviously of no value.”
I don’t agree. Every opinion is valid. How could it not be? Opinion is opinion, no body is claiming it’s fact.
“It’s got nothing to do with being the milkman or any body else. For that matter, NZ never used to disregard what people said based upon what they did for a living and we were better off because of it.”
Yes, I believe that concurs with what I implied.
I guess what you are trying to say is that every one is free to have and opinion which is true however some opinions are more valid than others, e.g, one mans view say based on his observation and common sense that the earth is flat verses the collective wisdom of science that The earth is not flat, similarly left wing doctrine that equal outcome is more important than equal opportunity, abstract groups are more important than individuals and that there is no such thing as individual responsibility, have nots have simply been exploited by the mythical system
equal outcome is more important than equal opportunity, abstract groups are more important than individuals and that there is no such thing as individual responsibility,
[citations needed]
False premises, false conclusions. Less charitable interpretations involve mindless parrots and malice.
+1
Because opinion not based upon reality such as the RWNJ delusion that the rich pay for everything is simply not valid.
It’s really simple.
Which is your opinion, therefor invalid.
No, the facts show that the rich don’t pay for anything at all. In fact, they’re actually paid to be rich. These are the facts. You don’t like them and so cling to your delusion.
I think that the opinions of imaginary persons are also invalid. Haven’t seen a milkman in decades.
😀
Why are we debating the difference between ‘opinion’ and ‘informed opinion”?
Might as well debate the difference between ‘tomatoes’ and ‘green tomatoes’.
We’re not. We’re discussing if all opinions are valid or not. Obviously, uninformed opinion isn’t valid at all.
Every opinion is valid. How could it not be?
People from Remuera carry a genetic marker that renders them criminal subhumans. Being resident in Remuera for more than six months infects you with the genetic marker.
The best solution is to nuke Remuera, and hunt the survivors with dogs and petrol.
Oh, and notional standards are a good idea.
Positively basking in validity.
+111
It’s the “entertainment” section, and no I don’t agree with Guy at all, cannot imagine the “perfect Labour Leader” in any human form, but Andrew Little is an intelligent man who cares about all NZers. I believe he will offer a sustainable, fairer system of government and have no problems with what he wears or whether he has “charisma” (whatever that is these days, lord knows Key hasn’t got any, despite being told over these long years that he has.)
So why is Key on 40% in the preferred PM stakes and Little on 9%?
If you don’t think it is down to charisma, it must mean that Little is simply not believed by the vast majority of NZers.
I think party support is a bit more complex than a false dichotomy.
It’s a tiny step for humankind, and a great giant leap for a wingnut.
🙄
Feet of clay.
Better wingnuts please.
Key on 40%? Isn’t that hugely down on his peak popularity of 50-something plus?
Averaging 39% over last 6 months in the Colmar Bruntons and Reid Research Polls. That’s 13-14 points down on his average during the Key Government’s First Term.
Highest rating over last 6 months = 40% (currently fluctuating within very tight parameters between 38%-40%)
Compared to high of 59% during First Term.
How does that compare to Clark over the same time period?
Weka, comparing same point in their Third Terms:
2/2 2015 = Key average 39%
2/2 2006 = Clark average 37%
Read Media reports over the last year and you’d assume from their hyperbolic rhetoric that Key is waaayyyyyyyy ahead of Clark. Reality is, as you can see, a mere 2 point difference.
(Clark did, however, start to fall away around mid-2007, albeit with a recovery of support during the 2008 Election campaign. Leader’s ratings often lift in the heat of a campaign with all the publicity / Leader’s Debates etc))
It was in 2006 that the Nats realised that Brash was unelectable and eased him out in favour of Key.
Little is about as electable as Brash was. And the sooner Labour admit that fact, the better.
thanks swordfish, that’s what I thought, so good to have it confirmed.
Crosby Textor
and some clever psychology/manipulation:
https://www.google.co.nz/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=14&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiH8bSs3JnLAhXEX5QKHUdbB80QFghgMA0&url=http%3A%2F%2Ftopdocumentaryfilms.com%2Fthe-century-of-the-self%2F&usg=AFQjCNFaU8XWzNBwlOTYvx0mQRmRxO5qZw
c73 may be a prat, but Guy Williams is no fool. That’s burning satire and it pays to pay attention when the court jesters get fiery.
Big day for world elections today. The Iran and Ireland results are slowly coming through, but seem inconclusive and will have to wait on coalition building:
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/feb/27/reformists-and-moderates-lead-race-in-early-election-results
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/feb/27/ireland-election-likely-hung-parliament-talk-grand-coalition
http://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2016/feb/27/ireland-general-election-exit-poll-coalition-fine-gael
Labour are getting punished for their support of austerity, with Sinn Féin beating them to third place and possibly part of a coalition if; a Fine Gael & Fianna Fáil coalition can’t make up the numbers with smaller parties and independents. All three of these parties have had long animosity so there may be a new election instead.
Also there is the South Carolina Democratic primary on the 27th (our 28th). This is only the second primary (Iowa and Nevada were caucuses), and favours Clinton; possibly because the antiestablishment black vote has somewhere else to go than Sanders:
http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/feb/26/willie-wilson-democratic-party-candidate-youve-never-heard-of
South Carolina Democratic primary
Demographic breakdown from NBC News Exit Poll
Clinton Support
Ethnicity…….2008……..2016………Diff
White…………43%………35%………Down 8 Points
Black………….55%………61%………Up 6 Points
It looks like Clinton has it in the bag with the Black Vote (62% of voters in this exit poll). 76% to 23% Sanders with 10 % counted (I don’t know what’s happened with Wilson).
http://www.cbsnews.com/elections/2016/primaries/democrat/south-carolina/
[edit “Other” has 0.6% with 11 % counted, I assume that’s Wilson]
According to Pew Research:
Black voters make up 51% of South Carolina Dems and Dem-leaners
White Voters = 41%
Latino = 6%
Other = 2%
The black support for Mrs Clinton has increased because her husband plays the saxophone.
While wearing shades.
Pretty sure Black supporters of Clinton think about a whole lot more things than whether her husband plays a saxophone.
blacklivesmatter
Well they must be thinking in relatively strange ways because, despite Hillary’s usual feel-good charade as she courts the Black vote, the Clintons have done nothing to earn such devotion.
http://www.thenation.com/article/hillary-clinton-does-not-deserve-black-peoples-votes/
I was just making a comment on saxophones swordfish, not Black people’s views of the politicians on offer, which I’m quite sure are varied and complex.
Perhaps with the benefit of hindsight, Sanders should have sought the Green nomination for President. Trying to wrest the Democratic nomination from Clinton was always a tough ask.
Looking at some of the stuff he did as Mayor of Burlington, VT it seems that he would have been more of a fit for the Greenies. Missed oppurtunity here.
He may have won New Hampshire, but Alex Tsongas won it back in 1992, and we never saw or heard from him again (he actually died a few years later, but that’s beside the point..)
1 – that there is a conspiracy by the 1% elite to financially enslave the world.
Why wouldn’t they? No conspiracy hypothesis required here. Greed of the super-rich and powerful has no constraint of conscience.
Yes and they do no need to conspire to make things happen the way they want.
Davos
Bildeberg
Fellow Auckland Mayoral candidate ‘Independent’ Phil Goff (currently Labour MP for Mt Roskill) supports the TPPA, road tolls, Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) and the sale of Auckland Council assets – starting with the Remuera Golf Course.
Which is why I expect to get electoral support from a number of Labour Party supporters, and the 64% of (2013) non-voters, who are unlikely, in my view, to feel inspired by these policies which are promoted by and serve the interests of the corporate 1%?
City Vision have endorsed Phil Goff as ‘their’ Mayoral candidate.
Phil Goff supports the TPPA, road tolls, Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) and the sale of Auckland Council assets – starting with the Remuera Golf Course.
Does that mean City Vision now supports the TPPA, road tolls, Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) and the sale of Auckland Council assets – starting with the Remuera Golf Course?
Perhaps ‘Mickey Savage’ could please explain?
Kind regards,
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Fuck off, liar. City Vision haven’t endorsed Phil Goff, as you well know. Any chance you’ll get round to telling us why you are a climate change denier? No, thought not. Transparency is for others. aye?
Pay your rates, bludger. Then you might have some credibility.
Courtesy please
No courtesy for lying spammers who troll this site to boost their own egos. Penny is a bludging bullshit artist who can’t answer a straight question. As I suggested yesterday, ACT is the party most closely aligned with her lifestyle and values.
“We are pleased to hear his solid commitment to retention of our publicly owned assets” seems straightforward enough evidence that City Vision are not endorsing Goff selling assets, let alone endorsing his candidacy. No doubt our dim local candidate will try to redefine ‘retention’ next.
Somehow I get the feeling that you may not be planning to vote for Penny in the local body elections. Just an impression I am getting.
the force is strong in this one… 🙂
“City Vision haven’t endorsed Phil Goff, as you well know.”
Yep, 3rd time Ms Bright has made that claim here in recent days.
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.”
I don’t expect Penny to mend her ways but other readers deserve not to be continually lied to.
+1 Sasha
http://cityvision.org.nz/news/media-release-city-vision-welcomes-phil-goffs-mayoral-announcement-and-prepares-for-2016-campaign/
23 November 2015
City Vision welcomes Phil Goff’s Mayoral Announcement and Prepares for 2016 Campaign
“Auckland needs strong, progressive leadership so we welcome Phil Goff’s announcement that he will campaign to be Auckland’s next Mayor”, says City Vision Councillor, Cathy Casey.
“Phil has a strong track record in senior positions, and is well known for being pragmatic, open-minded, and acting with integrity.
We are pleased to hear his solid commitment to retention of our publicly owned assets, his vision of a truly inclusive city, and his strong positions in favour of public transport and quality intensification;” says Cr Casey
“I have worked with Phil in my capacity as ward councillor for the last two terms since amalgamation and have developed a good working relationship with him in this time as well as an appreciation for his commitment to the people of Auckland.”
“City Vision believes that Auckland is at a cross-roads. The Supercity structure has helped to give the region a voice, and real progress on developing an integrated transport network has been made as a result.
However, there is no denying that many Aucklanders Havel lost confidence in Council in recent years and that a fresh start is required.
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.
……
________________________________________
In my view – the above-mentioned Press Release from City Vision is an endorsement of Phil Goff’s standing as a 2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Not yet a ‘formal’ endorsement by City Vision?
Then definitely, in my view, an ‘informal’ endorsement by City Vision.
I call bullsh*t on your semantics and ask again – do City Vision now support the TPPA, road tolls, PPPs and selling off Auckland Council assets – starting with the Remuera Golf Course?
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Endorse has quite a specific meaning in politics. Important that other readers get a chance to understand that, even if it’s beyond your grasp.
Really Sacha?
endorse Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary
dictionary.cambridge.org › dictionary
endorse meaning, definition, what is endorse: to make a public statement of your approval or support …
_____________________________________
So City Vision put out a (public) Press Release supporting Phil Goff standing as a 2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Looks like an ‘endorsement’ to me – according to the above-mentioned Cambridge Dictionary definition?
I respectfully request you ‘quit while you’re behind’ Sacha?
In my view, it’s not my grasp of this issue which is questionable – it’s yours.
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Your view will not surprise anyone here.
I respectfully request that you practice what you preach Sacha?
How is that FULL City Vision Press Release about Phil Goff’s 2016 Auckland Mayoral candidacy NOT an endorsement, albeit an ‘informal’ endorsement?
I look forward to readers of The Standard making up their own minds, after reading the full City Vision Press Release and thinking for themselves?
Kind regards
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Only one person has sought to take some likely policy positions of Goff and attach them to City Vision, by using the word ‘endorse’. It is clear that there is no arrangement on policy between those two entities.
Take some responsibility for your attempts to mislead readers and citizens. Better still, buck up your act. Your behaviour reduces the value of public discourse.
Kia ora Sacha
While there may be a precise political definition of the term “endorsement” from a “reasonable person” test, it certainly reads as an endorsement.
Ms Bright states: “Does that mean City Vision now supports the TPPA, road tolls, Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) and the sale of Auckland Council assets”.
City Vison states: “We are pleased to hear his solid commitment to retention of our publicly owned assets”.
Does that sound like an endorsement of that position, let alone of candidacy? Someone is trying to make black equal white here.
No different than opponents of intensifcation calling 3-storey buildings “high-rises”.
I’m asking what I think is a VERY fair question of City Vision Sacha, and look forward to clarification from City Vision.
Are you a member of City Vision Sacha?
Just asking – nicely 🙂
Kind regards
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
No.
Thank you Adele.
I agree.
Kind regards
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
While there may be a precise political definition of the term “endorsement” from a “reasonable person” test, it certainly reads as an endorsement.
One might hope that an aspiring politician might then go, “In light of the discussion I’d like to clarify my comment. City Vision appear to support Goff on certain issues while stopping short of a formal endorsement” or such (in their own language and with attention to whether Goff is supported or the issue).
Having a barney on social media seems counter productive.
I disagree.
In my view this is encouraging informed debate (or trying to) on pivotal issues pertaining to the Auckland region and the 2016 Auckland Mayoralty.
Isn’t this the purpose of ‘Open Mike’?
Penny Bright
Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Except it’s not informed debate if you start with a lie.
ps, Any chance you’re ready to explain why you’re a climate change denier? Y’know, for transparency’s sake?
Really Sacha?
Would you care to provide the precise ‘political’ definition of the term “endorsement” upon which you are apparently relying – which differs from that which I provided by the Cambridge Dictionary?
(Or did you just ‘make it up’?)
Kind regards
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
If people in politics do not understand common terms like ‘candidate’ ‘endorsement’ or ‘policy’ then there’s little point in discussion.
Thank you Sacha for confirming that you do NOT have a precise political definition of “endorsement” that differs to that which I provided from the Cambridge Dictionary.
Which means, in my opinion, you just ‘made it up’.
Which means, in my view, there is little point in discussing such terms as political “endorsement” with you, Sacha?
However – it won’t stop me trying 🙂
Kind regards
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Penny, how do you reconcile your reliance on precise dictionary definitions in regards to one part of the statement, with your complete ignoring of an explicit sentence at the end of the same statement?
Saying a political organisation “endorses” a candidate means that the organisation supports that candidate and wants its members and supporters to vote for that candidate and donate to their campaign, and help out in other ways.
Liking a candidate isn’t the same as saying everyone should vote for that candidate.
Sure, City Vision doesn’t think Goff is the devil. But if you work hard, you might gain equal respect in their eyes, and snatch their endorsement. Their actual endorsement, not just in a wider sense of the word that you’re using to mislead people.
It’s the word ‘formal’?
Semantics – in my view.
Perhaps City Vision may change their tune and NOT end up ‘formally’ endorsing Phil Goff, given his now publicly stated position supporting the TPPA, road tolls, PPPs and the sale of Auckland Council owned assets – starting with the Remuera Golf Course?
We shall see.
However, as a proven anti-privatisation campaigner – I shall be taking no prisoners on these issues (as it were).
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Not, it’s not down to a particular word.
It’s the coherent whole of the entire message.
They like Goff, they’re happy to see he’s running, but in case a better candidate comes along they’re not asking anyone to help him out, they’re not aligning their campaigning to him, and they’re not endorsing him.
I can’t believe that I have to explain basic language skills to someone who sees themselves as mayor of a million-citizen city.
The deliberate misleading is what annoys me. Bad faith corrodes civic discussions. Perhaps others are fine with that sort of behaviour – after all, look at who we elect as PM.
here’s a fresh example: http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/americas/77337489/chris-christies-donald-trump-endorsement-changes-everything
You keep dancing on the head of that pedantic pin Sacha….
Kind regards
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Really McFlock?
City Vision’s ‘informal’ endorsement of Phil Goff as an Auckland Mayoral candidate doesn’t read that way to me.
Are you perchance McFlock, a member of City Vision?
Just asking – nicely 🙂
Kind regards
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
no, I’m not, you nutbar. I live in Dunedin. I do, however, use the English language regularly.
The point is that adding the qualification “informal” does change the message somewhat. You might think it’s semantics, but it’s not.
Although from your perspective, I’m not sure how many formal or informal endorsements you’re likely to receive. You can’t even reply to the correct comment.
Attack , is not always the best form of defense
The form of attack employed in this instance, signals a nerve has been touched
Please expand….
Indeed!
I didn’t expect such offensive and defamatory attacks from a supposed ‘moderator’ of The Standard.
NOT impressed.
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
trp, you could always put your mod hat on. Isn’t it in the rules that if someone makes an assertion as fact they need to back it up when asked and do so within a reasonable timeframe?
Moderation has been loosened up, weka. All sorts of things that were not previously acceptable, such as racism and misogyny, are now fine. I’m not happy about it.
🙁
[It’s not true marty. Where it’s recognised, it’s gone…just the same less than perfect, but workable, procedure as always. Nothing at all has changed.] – Bill
thanks bill for the clarification – hope you all sort it out soon.
We ‘all’ have nothing to sort out really. I mean, in a perfect world of perfect awareness and what not, they’re a number of things that would never see the light of day on ‘ts’. But peeps in’t perfect and so most peeps just do the best they can and act in good faith to keep ‘ts’ as tolerable as possible.
For Penny’s benefit, although no doubt it will fall on deaf ears 😉
I welcome any moderator deleting repeated unsubstantiated nonsense over a period of days.
Me too, although a warning/ban process might be more expedient.
An endorsement is an endorsement. Penny didn’t distinguish between ‘formal’ and ‘informal’ (Fucked if I care about the hair splitting on that one to be honest). Sasha provided a link that’s definitely a very strong informal endorsement. And that may or may not be a prelude to a formal endorsement.
All that happened after the initial conversation asking for back up (and me posting the rules). I don’t have an opinion about whether Penny has provided adequate backup, I think we past peak crazy already 😉
EXACTLY Bill.
“An endorsement is an endorsement.
Penny didn’t distinguish between ‘formal’ and ‘informal’ ”
Thanks for that.
Kind regards
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Except you are lying. City Vision specifically said it was not an endorsement.
In my view te reo putake – the one who is effectively lying is YOU.
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.
……
________________________________________
How was the City Vision (public) Press Release supporting Phil Goff as an Auckland Mayoral candidate – not an ‘endorsement’ – albeit not yet a ‘formal’ endorsement?
Are you not yet familiar with the following words, in my opinion, of sound political wisdom?
“When you’re in a hole – stop digging”?
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
When they specifically say it’s not an endorsement, it’s not an endorsement. Grow up or fuck off, troll.
Neither racism nor misogyny are fine as far as moderation on ts is concerned trp – and you know this.
Just because you wanted a person- an author you just happen to have huge issues with, condemned for allegedly racist comments, and got no bites (due, by the way, to the comments not being racist), does not translate as those with moderating rights okay-ing racism.
You’re wrong, Bill. And we both know why you are saying this.
Wrong on what front trp?
Are you a) saying the exchange I’m alluding to was racist?
(No-one – and I do mean no-one – who could be bothered to comment was in agreement with you on that.)
Or are you b) saying that I’m wrong when I say that recognised instances of racism will not be endorsed/tolerated by moderators when and where they come across it?
(As far as I’m aware, no moderator who comes across an instance of racism will defend it.)
The only reason I commented as I did above at 6.1.4.1.3 and as an edit in 6.1.4.1.1 is because it’s the truth of the matter. No-one anywhere has suggested any kind of change, in either policy or practice, in relation to racist comments.
(As far as I’m aware, no moderator who comes across an instance of racism will defend it.)
Ahem. Except you, Bill.
So, first it’s claimed that ‘ts’ will tolerate racism. Now it’s progressed to just me, as opposed to ‘ts’. Link to an example.
TS actually does now tolerate bigotry. The rules haven’t changed, but the application has. You, personally, are happy to turn a blind eye as long as its a) done by someone you like and b) not about the folk north of Hadrian’s wall.
First sentence disingenuous insofar as that type of charge could always have been leveled at ‘ts’. But that’s because it’s to do with individual mods recognising those things when they appear. And no-one has a perfect awareness of various discriminations.
Second part of second sentence (change in application of the rules) patently untrue.
Third sentence completely riddled with nonsense, bullshit and lies.
And no link provided to back your claim that I defend racism.
Yes, Bill, right you are. You know why the link can’t be posted, but still you ask. How cute. You’ve helped lower the standard, and you know it. Give yourself a couple of slow claps.
are you guys arguing about a comment in open mike a week or two ago, or are you referring to something that happened in the back-end of TS?
So the reality is that there are no instances of me defending racism.
And what you’d like to think I was asking for (I wasn’t) is a portion of a back-end discussion, that obviously can’t be linked to, where you made a charge of racism against another, where that claim elicited not a single comment of support or agreement from anyone.
That you have taken that absence of any of support for your position to somehow mean that racism is fine by those who moderate is quite astonishing (and not a little troubling imo).
Yes, McFlock. And Bill knows I won’t reveal what was said on the back end discussion, hence his being precious about the link. It really is a case of a lowering of the tolerance level, dependent on who the commenter is. That’s something we get regularly accused of over at PG’s place, but I never previously thought actually happened here.
Anyhoo, my feelings on acceptable moderation aren’t everyone else’s. My line is that we shouldn’t leave bigotry unremarked upon, no matter who does it. That could be anything from a ‘steady on, old chap’ sort of thing to more severe restraints. But if we say nothing, particularly when it’s pointed out to us, we are tacitly approving it.
Enraged verbal abuse no problem for you then, Weka ?
Apparently One Two.
I wonder how long I’d last on The Standard if I verbally abused te reo putake in the same offensive and defamatory way he/she has referred to me?
What do others on The Standard think?
Is this acceptable to YOU?
How would YOU like it?
Penny Bright
2015 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
I can quite honestly say here that TRP is correct, City Vision have not officially endorsed Phil Goff and as for abuse well as someone that gets banned frequently and so forth, its their blog and you play by their rules
If you don’t accept the rules of the blog then set your own blog up
I have abused trp with the same coarse language today – it is okay if it can be somehow relevant 🙂
Trp is being a macho shithead and I can’t see much useful about what he is doing. Penny is annoying at least as many commenters as trp. What does that tell you?
1. There are angry and potentially violent people in positions of ‘status’ at this site, who lack self control and self awareness
2. That verbally abusing woman is acceptable at this site
3. That moderators and authors don’t respect eachother, openly
4. That commenters are hypocrites, and worse
5. That commenters cited rules regarding ‘backing up with facts’ and entered into pedantry over word definitions, suggesting warnings/bans instead of stepping up and shutting down the verbally abusive TRP
6. That NZ has little chance of turning around because the so called ‘left’ exhibits such behaviours
7. That jellousy and ego are too poweful for people to control for a better cause
The list is endless….
I share your concerns One Two.
Having come from the background of engineering workshop(s), I am not a delicate flower when it comes to profane language.
However – I do draw the line to being told to f.. k off when I am trying to debate, serious issues on ‘Open Mike’ pertaining to the upcoming local government elections, particularly in Auckland, where I am a Mayoral candidate.
I also take exception to offensive and defamatory comments made by te reo putake.
When MY rights are under attack – I WILL stand up and fight back.
In fact – I have defamatory proceedings on foot in the Auckland High Court, arising from comments made about me by the CEO of Auckland Council.
Copping ad hominem attacks, in my view, are usually a sign that you have ‘hit a nerve’ to which the other party has no valid reply (on the issue).
Don’t worry – I know how to defend myself (have plenty of practice on Kiwiblog 🙂
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Those things were already in your head by the sounds of it, not so much to do with trp being a shit and Penny annoying the fuck out of a bunch of people.
5. That commenters cited rules regarding ‘backing up with facts’ and entered into pedantry over word definitions, suggesting warnings/bans instead of stepping up and shutting down the verbally abusive TRP
Commenter, single. I can’t shut trp down, he’s an author. I could have said something to him about his behaviour, but I’m sick of being the behaviour police around here. I am curious though, why didn’t you give him a telling off?
Plural. You were not alone.
Of course you can shut him down, or try to. You’re clearly a long time contributer to this site, and undoubtedly have the respect of authors , moderators and commenters.
If you have reached the stage of being worn down being the behaviour police, and those who should be performing that role, don’t, won’t or in this instance, are the abusers…..
Then perhaps it’s time to move in a different direction before you lose reapect for yourself
6.1.3
I’m ok with who I am thanks.
“Of course you can shut him down, or try to.”
I suggest you go look at what happend to marty today in arguing with trp and see what happens.
You didn’t answer my question. Why didn’t you take on trp over this behaviour?
te reo putake 6.1
28 February 2016 at 10:23 am
Fuck off, liar. City Vision haven’t endorsed Phil Goff, as you well know. Any chance you’ll get round to telling us why you are a climate change denier? No, thought not. Transparency is for others. aye?
Pay your rates, bludger. Then you might have some credibility.
___________________________________________________
Aren’t you supposed to be a ‘moderator’ te reo putake?
Your comment is both offensive and defamatory.
Starting with withdrawing and apologising for making that comment?
I also respectfully suggest that you ‘pull your head in’ and ‘mind your manners’?
As a ‘moderator’ – lead from the front and practice what you preach – sort of thing?
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Fuck off liar. If you want to prove me wrong, post the link to City Vision’s endorsement of Phil Goff. You can’t, because you are lying. You talk a lot about transparency, but you refuse to be open and honest with the voters of Auckland or the readers of the Standard. You’re a spamming, trolling, bludgeing hypocrite.
Feel free to sue me if any of that is incorrect.
Ok te reo putake.
I gave you, as a supposed ‘moderator’ of The Standard an opportunity to withdraw your offensive and defamatory comment.
You didn’t.
Now I am about to test the complaints process of The Standard.
(FYI – similar offensive and defamatory comments made about me on Kiwiblog have been ‘sanctioned’ by strikes and stand downs by host David Farrar.)
And YOU te reo putake – are supposed to be a ‘moderator’??
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
trp is a author but isn’t, as far as I’m aware, a moderator.
Actually, I do have the ability to moderate, Bill, but of late, I’ve kept it to a bare minimum.
Yes te reo putake – a number of your comments pertaining to me, today, have been anything but ‘moderate’, in my opinion.
In fact I have found a number of them to be both offensive and defamatory.
BTW – how on earth can anyone ‘troll’ on ‘Open Mike’?
Don’t you know what ‘troll’ means, pertaining to commenting on a blog?
Perhaps you shouldn’t use words you don’t know the meaning of?
(Meant of course in a caring way 😉
Kind regards
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Fuck off, liar. You’re a spam spewing, cut and paste troll, who hasn’t got enough integrity to address reasonable questions. You’re a bullshitter, a denier and an evader of the awkward truth. A person who wants to tell others what to do, while doing the opposite. Someone who thinks it’s everybody else’s burden to pay for the things we share.
Come to think of it, you might have what it takes to be mayor after all.
Probably disagree with every other view of TRP but he is 100 pc on the mark here
lol
and such an endorsement might lead to TRP re-evaluating the vociferousness, if not the accuracy, of their claim 👿
I’m buggered now, aren’t I? I’ll get me hat and coat.
what are the defamatory ones?
edit just saw trp’s latest – must be something in there?
Are you a member of City Vision perchance te reo putake?
Just asking – nicely 🙂
Kind regards
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Are you currently here on planet earth, Penny? Just asking – nicely.
And yes, I am actually running City Vision from a back room in Standard Towers. I knew you’d find me out eventually, but crikey, that was fast! Now, what was that you were saying about your views on climate change?
Poor City Vision …. 😉
Kind regards
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Whoosh …
It’s how the vulgar wealthy / corporates / 1% have always operated.
History tells us that.
In more recent times the quote by Warren Buffet
“There’s class warfare, all right, but it’s my class, the rich class, that’s making war, and we’re winning.”
or the Citibank plutonomy documents outline this perfectly.
http://politicalgates.blogspot.co.nz/2011/12/citigroup-plutonomy-memos-two-bombshell.html
Go back further and “War is a racket” outlines the rort of the rich.
http://www.ratical.org/ratville/CAH/warisaracket.html
It’s how they do business and if they can shape the world in their own image they will.
Someone once here posted the response of the steam companies to the development of electricity and how they legislated to take their power (no pun intended at all) back.
What changed at some point was not the behaviour of the rich and powerful. This continues unabated. What changed was the working class wresting some power off them through labour rights and re-distribution.
Change won’t happen until those things are wrested back again.
Right now no-one is wresting those back in NZ.
Even a simple concept like an 8 hour working day, 40 hour working week is anathema to every single political party in NZ. Something we used to lead the world in and were very proud of.
It’s not the right that have changed and need changing – it’s the cowed left.
Absolutely.
“It’s not the right that have changed and need changing – it’s the cowed left.”
would suggest it is the deceived centre that needs “changing”….in the absence of societal change.
“deceived centre” – nah they are not deceived at all.
They vote for their interests.
They know well what they are doing.
some yes….but “the centre” is a very broad church, and as we know from polling it only requires a small portion of that congregation to shift to have the desired effect
It’s the left however that determine left policies. You can’t vote for left policies – such as an 8 hour working day – if those policies no longer exist within political parties.
You can’t strike if there’s no left policies enabling this. At present you can only strike at the expiry of a contract. Who is looking at changing this – no-one.
Unions are cowed and buy into things such as three year contracts when a one year contract could at least give them the power to strike every year. Three year contracts in a fast changing world just give away what little power unions have left.
The right and centre voters are summed up in this quote.
“The modern conservative is engaged in one of man’s oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness.” J.K. Galbraith
There are left wing policies in New Zealand.
They are not to be found in the Labour Party though.
Sabine’s post re the flag is as pertinent here as it is there…
Of the participating public in General elections I would suggest the mobile ” centre” is as large as 40%….some more willing to be deceived than others.
The majority on these blogs are not members of this group.
Nah that’s disingenuous.
It implies that people make a conscious decision not to vote because of one policy or other as opposed to say “Fuck it can’t be bothered cause they’re all the same anyway”.
I remember talking to one old lady on the bus who voted National. She did this because her (now long deceased husband) had told her to always vote National. Doing otherwise would let him down.
It’s much more complicated than the conscious decision making process because people are much more complicated than that and emotion will always play a part in decision making.
Part of the problem is seeing the appeal of the centre voters as the way to win elections.
On re-think was a good example this morning of how taking a principled and what would have been considered a far from centre position enabled and energised people and led to significant change.
For those who didn’t see this this was the land march.
At the end of the day left wing policies need to have some passion and resonance – an emotional as well as a rational being to attract voters.
Chasing the center voters as a tactic to win just comes across as cynical.
The logic might appeal to some rational sense but it’s clearly not enough.
It was also rational for Labour and Greens to not compete against each other in some seats (and lets face both parties had and have infinitely more control over that than the voters) and win the last election but the emotional attachment Labour have to themselves meant that did not happen.
It was much more rational if Labour wanted to help people at the bottom to put the $20-00 per week back on benefits before putting it back on NZS but they chose not to do this because of the emotional value they would get out of voting superannuitants.
Those on benefits continue to be poor and getting poorer.
you frame it incorrectly….it is not a case of “chasing ” the widely disparaged centre voter…it is convincing that relatively small proportion of them that their interests are better served by the alternative……and this has to be achieved in an environment of general disinterest and “once over lightly”….(your description of the National voter has its mirror image within Labour and these are not your target audience.)….once successful with this , only then can you hope to address the issues you outline.
So forget about the poorest and the most marganalised UNTIL you have power.
Tried that with Helen Clark’s 9 years of Labour government.
As noted they increased super but not benefits, they put in draconian measures against beneficiaries, they barely touched labour laws.
How’d that approach work out for those not voting.
9 years of pale blue.
Yeah there’s an argument that a Labour government is a better alternative to National but left it’s not.
the left loosely defined in NZ
the Labour Party
the Green Party
Mana
the right loosely defined in NZ
The National Party
Act
the conservatives
the Maori Party
un-affiliated, or turn coats, or opportunists
NZFirst
Peter Fucken Dunne Party
Maori Party (yes i put them in two categories, as they admit to be working with everyone – all of he above just to get to parliament)
and i want people to vote, irrespective of whom they vote, i want them to vote. People have fought very hard to give us the rights we have today, and hardest of all the was right to vote especially for women.
Whom they vote for, that is not my choice to make, they will decide forthemselves once they are in the polling booth. But I want them to go there, and Just do it! tis the only point i am trying to make.
definitely do not forget about the most marginalised…..it is consideration of exactly that that requires a compromise to enable a less bad option…..and whether it is left enough or not is not the point, at least it is not blatantly corrupt.
@descendant of ssmith
I think you are making good points. It occurs to me that the centre voters are the ones without much passion. Easy peasy. they say they are looking for stability but really not too bothered providing they feel they are doing okay.
They are not driven by ideals of fairness and social mobility as on the left or on the RW side. an aggrieved defence against demands that others should have opportunities to rise and sit alongside these godlike achievers. (Refer to the Four Yorkshireman, monty python, ‘Aye, I had it hard etc.).
Bingo.
Every single political party in NZ is all about keeping things the way they are rather than changing them as needed.
by and large thats true, and I agree there needs to be wholesale change…BUT, we need to work with whats available until such time as that change gathers momentum.
And getting rid of the current lot is becoming increasingly important as another term of this BS will take us further down the road of no return
“Every single political party in NZ is all about keeping things the way they are rather than changing them as needed.”
Except when rich people want more priviliges.
See how profit is a weight around the shoulders of infrastructure companies.
http://www.newshub.co.nz/nznews/vector-struggling-with-18b-bill-for-auckland-expansion-2016022809#axzz41PF7ta3a
Two solutions:
1. Stop distributing profit to shareholders while you develop what you need to
2. Make the developers and builders of new homes in new subdivisions pay the additional costs needed.
The private sector is pretty good at telling us what things cost when they want to charge us long term existing users – work out the cost and charge the new users.
$5,000 per house seems small change if you’re paying over a million dollars for each house.
Wallace Chapman: “I won’t read any racist
messages on air. Here’s an anti-Maori one I’ve chosen.”
Sunday Morning, RNZ National, 28 February 2016
If you listened to Mediawatch this morning, you would have heard a rather fraught debate between Willie Jackson and RNZ Head of Content Carol Hirschfeld about RNZ’s commitment, or lack of commitment, to Maori language and Maori culture.
After the 10 o’clock news, host Wallace Chapman said: “Lots of feedback about the Mediawatch programme this morning. But I have to say that a lot of the comments are RACIST. So I won’t be reading them out. Still, thanks for your comments, and keep them coming.
Less than an hour later, just before 11 o’clock, Chapman broke his pledge not to read out any racist statements. No doubt Chapman had received many intelligent and thoughtful responses about that debate, but he chose to read one that might have been sent in by his namesake Kyle Chapman, or by someone equally vile like Larry “Lackwit” Williams or David Round or Stephen Franks…
WALLACE CHAPMAN: There has been a LOT of feedback about the Mediawatch programme this morning. I’ll just read this one: “They’ve got their own TV station, for heaven’s sake.”
Could they coax Chris Laidlaw out of retirement?
More on Wallace Chapman…
Yes please. Bring back Chris Laidlaw. While I believe Wallace Chapman is probably a quite nice chap he just doesn’t seem to know how to conduct an intelligent interview.
Or put pressure on the powerful.
How many thousands are lining up to see Hillary Clinton?
__________________________________________________
Thousands line up to see Bernie Sanders in Austin.
http://kxan.com/2016/02/27/thousands-wait-in-line-to-see-bernie-sanders-in-austin/
Democratic Presidential candidate Senator Bernie Sanders campaigns at the Circuit of the Americans in southeast Austin on Saturday, February 27.
Austin (KXAN) — Thousands lined up to see Sen. Bernie Sanders at Circuit of Americas Saturday morning, despite long security lines.
Sanders visited Austin to kick off his “Future to Believe in Austin Rally.” He took the stage just after noon.
At the beginning of his speech, Sanders pointed out Texas will vote for the most delegates of any state on Super Tuesday, with 222 pledged delegates of the 4,051 needed to win the nomination.
Sanders also said the nation’s minimum wage should be raised to $15 an hour, expand benefits to retired Americans, end homelessness among veterans and demand equal pay for women.
He asked the Austin crowd how many had student debt, which led to a lot of hands being raised.
“Unbelievable!” Sanders said of the Austin crowd. “This is an epidemic of debt.”
While talking about racial inequality, Sanders promised major reforms while attacking Republican frontrunner Donald Trump.
“We are not going to allow the Trumps of the world to divide us up,” Sanders said, which led to cheers. “And that we are going to bring major reforms to a broken, very broken, criminal justice system.”
………
___________________
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Mugabe’s lavish 92nd birthday party angers critics
https://www.rt.com/usa/halloween-party-depp-obama-421/
No wonder Britain’s scofflaw regime want to close down this television station
About 15 minutes into this, you’ll see an unintentionally hilarious contribution by the hapless son of that old zombie Neil Kinnock….
What an ugly thread.
Yes. There are no perfect people, but you have to accept that bashing out the ugly is usually better done with pixels than pitchforks.
Very true.
Pretty strong stuff all right. Quite rare to see blog moderators slugging it out too.
Testes Testes Testes …
Just seeing if I am able to write comments in here yet … and how long it takes for my comment to appear in the Standard 🙂
[lprent: You just have to get a first comment past a moderator. All we look for is that your comment has something vaguely to do with the post (not a criteria on OpenMike) and the conversation that you join, and doesn’t look like it was written by a idiot trying to learn how to wank online (and failing). That is because we’re interested in people who can express an opinion and then be able to argue for it with a degree of intelligence. This appears to be something that isn’t common amongst the neolithic self pleasuring trolls.
If it’d been my pass through moderating, this comment would probably not have gotten through. I detest people who can only grunt commentary on what they are manipulating. ]
Look at that picture of my naked titties in my profile picture.
No wonder TeReoPutake wants to have babies with me. LOL.
You’re all class, Mike. The wedding’s back on.
@Prentice
Oh dear … my last two comments would have failed on all counts then. LOL 🙂
Hmmm
“The old regimes of ‘Bailoutistan’ that were put in place by the troika, or by their acceptance of the troika programmes, have collapsed in every country where we had an election during the last twelve months,
http://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/yanis-varoufakis-electorate-has-rejected-dead-end-policies-1.2551925
So Pete George – in my opinion – is misrepresenting what I have said on his blog?
It will be interesting to see if he publishes my reply ..
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
(Consistent and persistent in her opposition to the TPPA, road tolls, privatisation via Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) and sales of Auckland Council assets (including the Remuera Golf Club).
About 300 foreigners a month are being issued IRD numbers for the purpose of buying or selling property in NZ.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/77300899/House-prices-will-take-off-as-more-foreigners-issued-IRD-numbers
You fucken prick trp or voice of reason for deleting my comment which WASN’T on the subthread you have decided to stop because your idiot mind couldn’t take it – what a fucken bogus weakling you are
It was deleted for abuse, as I’m sure you understand. Wanna catch up for a chat? No, thought not, tough guy.
lol less abuse than above liar
So you can’t say what the problem is? Goodo. This discussion is ended. Further comments on this sub-thread go straight to trash.
No, trp, I can most definitely say what the problem is. Anyone here, including yourself, knows that I am not shy about explaining myself or unable to. In this instance I choose not to, because you have spent a day not hearing what has been said to you.
my deleted comment was also an explanation but obviously not one voicey wanted to hear for some reason.
I am perturbed by voiceys ‘go to violence’ option above – pretty typical for bully’s though.
not the finest hour on ts :-/
No indeed – the whole day on here has been pretty shit really, anyway tomorrow is almost here. Kia kaha weka
Cheers, you too marty.
Urgh…just noticed the “thumbs up” doo-dad. “Thumbs down” for the “thumbs up”.
+1s are okay though.
Looks like you have to have a login to contribute to it too, bummer 🙁 With heated disussions currently happening not sure if it will go any way to easing tensions either.
Hmmm, not a fan … for obvious reasons!
Was testing some code by looking at performance under a bit of sunday evening load.
I think I like the likes. Great, see how they go.
horses mouth
http://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/feb/28/mervyn-king-new-financial-crisis-is-certain-without-reform-of-banks
@Prentice
Oh dear … my last two comments would have failed on all counts then. LOL 🙂