Open mike 30/07/2016

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, July 30th, 2016 - 64 comments
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64 comments on “Open mike 30/07/2016 ”

  1. Colonial Viper 1

    James Clapper CIA head says that the media needs to stop blaming Russia for the DNC email hacks

    Some 30,000 Democratic National Committee emails were released by WikiLeaks last Friday, exposing the Democratic National Committee’s bias in favor of Hillary Clinton.

    After the release, Clinton’s campaign accused Russia of meddling in the 2016 election campaign. Despite lacking any proof to substantiate their claims, a number of US media outlets picked up the ball and repeated the accusations, claiming Russians had hacked into the DNC’s computer servers and leaked emails to WikiLeaks in order to help the Donald Trump campaign.

    Speaking on Thursday, Clapper said that Americans need to stop blaming Russia for the hack, telling the crowd that the US has been running in “reactionary mode” when it comes to the numerous cyber-attacks the nation is continuously facing.

    “I’m somewhat taken aback by the hyperventilation on this,” Clapper said, as cited by the Washington Examiner.

    “I’m shocked someone did some hacking,” he added sarcastically, “[as if] that’s never happened before.”

    https://www.rt.com/usa/353840-us-intelligence-hyperventilation-dnc-hack/

    • Pasupial 1.1

      On the topic of the DNC, here is some weekend reading (it’s long, but seems thorough). I’ve only scratched the surface, but this is from the conclusions:

      Based on this work, Election Justice USA has established an upper estimate of 184 pledged delegates lost by Senator Bernie Sanders as a consequence of specific irregularities and instances of fraud. Adding these delegates to Senator Sanders’ pledged delegate total and subtracting the same number from Hillary Clinton’s total would more than erase the 359 pledged delegate gap between the two candidates. EJUSA established the upper estimate through exit polling data, statistical analysis by precinct size, and attention to the details of Democratic proportional awarding of national delegates. Even small changes in vote shares in critical states like Massachusetts and New York could have substantially changed the media narrative surrounding the primaries in ways that would likely have had far reaching consequences for Senator Sanders’ campaign.

      B. RECOMMENDATIONS

      Finally, we wish to bring the reader’s attention to three simple reforms that would eliminate the mere possibility of the vast majority of fraud types demonstrated or evidenced in this report:

      1) Exclusive use of hand-counted paper ballots in all future US elections.

      2) Automatic voter registration, with same-day party affiliation switching as a mandatory

      condition for all elections that are publicly funded.

      3) Restoration of voting rights legislation which would ensure adequate access to polling sites.

      Election Justice USA maintains that these recommendations for future elections, contrary to common claims, save taxpayer money.

      https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6J1ecILnk3UUy1KZ2FUT29iQ1E/view?pref=2&pli=1

      • Colonial Viper 1.1.1

        These would be very nice changes

        Having each state’s electoral college votes assigned proportionally according to the % that candidates receive in their state, would also be huge. (And allow fractions of electoral votes up to 1 decimal point eg. NY State could have 20.3 of its electoral college votes go Democratic, 5.6 go Republican, 2.1 Greens, 1.0 Libertarian ).

        • Nic the NZer 1.1.1.1

          The US system would benefit greatly from a STV type system. Multiple cases parties blame third party candidates for vote splitting causing overall loss (and probably not incorrectly in some of them).

    • Colonial Viper 2.1

      It can be avoided – temporarily – by piling more debt into the system in order to get a bit more cash into the economy…

  2. swordfish 3

    Hot on the heels of the recently-released LSE study documenting acute anti-Corbyn bias throughout the UK MSM over the last 12 months, a new analysis claims online and television media showed “clear and consistent bias” against Jeremy Corbyn at the start of the present Labour leadership coup,

    Also accuses the BBC of giving twice as much airtime to Corbyn’s critics than to his supporters on some programmes during the crisis.

    The exclusive study from The Media Reform Coalition and Birkbeck, University of London, analysed TV and online news during the 10 days after the wave of resignations from Corbyn’s shadow cabinet following the Brexit vote in late June … Measuring how much airtime and online coverage was focused on the embattled leader’s allies and opponents, the research found “a marked and persistent imbalance in favour of sources critical of Jeremy Corbyn, the issues that they sought to highlight, and the arguments they advanced.”

    http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/jeremy-corbyn-media-bias-bbc_uk_579a3cd7e4b06d7c426edff0?edition=uk&utm_hp_ref=uk

    As veteran broadcaster, film-maker and Left activist, Paul Mason, has argued, for all its faults “The old BBC would have taken evidence like this seriously. The pre-Hutton BBC would not have let it happen”.

    • swordfish 3.1

      Executive Summary of Report

      – 465 online articles and 40 prime time news bulletins assessed

      – Twice as much airtime given to critical, rather than supportive voices

      – Huge imbalance in favour of issues pushed by Corbyn critics on early evening BBC and ITV bulletins – especially pronounced in headline stories

      – Strong tendency within BBC main evening news for reporters to use pejorative
      language when describing Jeremy Corbyn and his supporters

      – Domination of views opposed to the Labour leadership in all but one of the online
      outlets sampled, and across both left and right-leaning titles

      – Online-only news sites relatively balanced in their coverage, as well as the BBC online

  3. mauī 4

    Truth comes out about child abuse. Has an ugly truth about it so expect this to be ignored when the next case hits the media. Default back to that right wing mantra personal responsibility.

    http://i.stuff.co.nz/national/faces-of-innocents/82586709/Faces-of-Innocents-High-rates-of-child-abuse-among-Maori-can-be-traced-back-to-colonisation-academic-says

    • Olwyn 4.1

      I read that article, and I generally accept what the writer says but also think there is more to it. Our big, gadget-designing heads mean that we are born very vulnerable and also have reduced instinct in comparison to, say, a cat. Consequently, we learn how to look after children through community participation and observation. Uprootedness robs people of the conditions under which they learn. In the 20’s, the answer to this problem was Plunket, which offered method and support, and whatever we think of their method now, far less children died from their parents’ inadequacies. More genuine support and less vilification would go a long way toward reducing the harm done to children in NZ.

    • miravox 4.2

      It is an ugly truth.

      As a Pākehā I am sorry that this has happened. As colonialists we can’t go and turn the clock back, but each country can work with colonised peoples to ameliorate the damage. This starts, of course, with an acknowledgment of the harm that was done to indigenous nations and communities over time.

      I broadly agree with Olwyn about practical support and education, but we also need to go further continue to tackle the institutional and personal discrimination and poor life chances that create more external stresses on indigenous families everywhere. Some of these stresses cross over with other communities, however I can see how the history of colonisation creates a more difficult dynamic that requires more complex solutions. But you’re right. Every time this road gets taken, the bigots come out and turn tragic reality into a political football.

    • weston 4.3

      ho hum the same tired old excuses…colonization …maori wernt allowed to speak their own language 100 years ago…maori were really nice to their kids before pakehas came along…..excuses excuses .Nobodies gonna deny maori wernt disinfranchised by white merchants but only the religious ones would have ADVOCATED the beating of children.Surely we are all humans with exactly the same brain and with exactly the same powers of reasoning ability whether we are black white or rainbow coloured .Violence begets violence and if there is four times as many maori in jail today as any other race it has far more to do with maori beating their kids four times as much than for any other reason i.m.h.o.

      • North 4.3.1

        It’s not for the coloniser to dismiss the continuing impact of his actions on the colonised. In fact it’s incredibly stupid to accord the slightest respect to that analysis. It is such a cover for prejudice.

        • weston 4.3.1.1

          Prejudice ? nope Like i said violence is violence and beating your kids is the same act no matter if you are black white or rainbow coloured .It is the same no matter what culture you live in because man is the same the world over . Violence is a human problem and humans are the most violent species on earth .I.m.o. its nothing to do with colonizing its about not visiting the sins of the father onto the child again and again and again .

          • mauī 4.3.1.1.1

            Don’t you want to ask why might there be more abuse in that culture? If Māori still had their lands intact, and had food, environmental and cultural stability, do you really think we would be getting these horrific stories? I don’t think we would.

            • Colonial Viper 4.3.1.1.1.1

              What were levels of violence like when Māori had all their lands intact? What are levels of violence like in areas post Treaty settlement vs pre Treaty settlement?

              • mauī

                Yes, there was pre european inter tribal violence and mass migration into different regions. I just wonder if europeans played by fair rules from the beginning, then maybe Māori could have united without the major social disadvantages they have now.

                Obviously post treaty settlement not all Māori see any benefit from the millions given.

                • Colonial Viper

                  In inflation adjusted dollars, the value of Treaty settlements to date is well over $1 billion.

                  In your opinion. What difference, if any, in levels of violence has this massive financial wealth made?

                  What difference to levels of violence, if any, would another $1 billion in Treaty settlements make?

                  • Inflaton proofed is a false position because the settlement are paid in the dollars of the day.

                    Down south the settlement paid was less than 3% of the actual real value of the land .

                    • Colonial Viper

                      Inflation proof is a false position?

                      What do you mean?

                      A $100M settlement in 1996 is worth way way more financially than a $100M settlement in 2016.

                    • So what

                      they got the money when they got it

                    • Colonial Viper

                      You don’t think that Teina Pora’s compensation should be inflation adjusted then? Just paid out the lower sum in the dollars of today, instead of the worth of the dollars from say 20 years ago?

                      Everyone knows that you have to inflation adjust dollar values from the past because current day dollars are not worth as much.

                    • Are you thick?

                      Ngāi Tahu got 170m. Not the equivalent today’s dollar inflation adjusted figure. They got 170m.

                      As for your first paragraph – wow you’re starting to sound like trump now too.

                    • Colonial Viper

                      Hi MM,

                      CPI adjusted that 1997 settlement of $170M is worth $248M in todays dollars.

                      Which sounds about right, given that $170M back in 1997 is worth way more financially than the same numerical $170M today.

                    • I hope the little games amuse you. Pick on another group there are plenty to choose from.

                      You could inflation adjust 20b the low estimated value of what was taken.

                    • Colonial Viper

                      $20B is a relatively small amount of money, less than 10% of what the Govt spends in a single 3 year term, and a much more suitable amount for compensation IMO.

                  • Robertina

                    Over $1 billion sounds like such a huge sum but in the scheme of things it is not.
                    An example, Canterbury DHB received more than $1.2 billion under population-based health funding in 2015/16 – one year’s funding.

                    • Colonial Viper

                      So $1B to $2B is not that much money in the scheme of things.

                      Would another $1B to $2B funding make much more difference if the first $1B to $2B have not?

            • weston 4.3.1.1.1.2

              Everyone even today suffers from pressure and stress of one kind or another but still its a choice of whether we take it out on the kids or not and maori do not have a monopoly on family violence .Violence against families is a problem within our pacific island neighbors too although it tends to be reported as violence against women ie wives .If someone cut down all my peach trees and ruined my ability to sustain myself of course id be fucked off id wanna kill those fuckers but i guess unless i was completely out of my mind id hope i wouldnt take it out on the kids .whatever you say about past wrongs etc isnt it still a matter of parental responsibility ?By the way in case you think im coming at this out of a holier than thau attitude i freely admit to as a young parent lashing out at my kids ive booted them wacked their arses and clipped them arround the ears but that was forty years ago and i grew up about the same time .I realized that i was repeating the same stuff that was done to me as a kid that i was saying things like “stop crying or ill give you something to cry about “.Thank goodness for sue bradfords bill putting the issue into legislation because the collective will in regards with whats ok to do to your kids would still just be a matter of whether there was a piece of alkathene handy for a good number of the population .!!!

  4. The Chairman 5

    The bill would give “draconian” power to the commission, King said.

    Council chief executive Richard King said the government was forcing the Auckland model on the rest of the country.

    The Invercargill City Council is calling on Southland’s councils and members of parliament to unite and stand up for local democracy by opposing the Better Local Services Bill.

    Water supply, waste water and transport could be taken from council control and put into council-controlled organisations under the bill.

    The commission would have the power to force councils to join existing council-controlled organisations and to transfer functions and powers between councils.

    The bill would also remove council’s ability to appoint elected members as directors of multiply-owned council-controlled organisations. That would mean the public would have no say around the board table, King said.

    Deputy Mayor Darren Ludlow said the potential for a reduction in local democracy was unacceptable. Proposed council-controlled organisations will increase costs, not efficiencies, he said

    Shadbolt said the bill, in his view, should be called the “Crushing of Local Government Democracy and Seizing Control of Their Assets Bill”.

    http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/82637635/southland-mps-and-councils-urged-to-fight-against-legislation-attacking-local-democracy

    Thoughts?

    • miravox 5.1

      “Thoughts?”

      after you….

    • weston 5.2

      Go tim shadbolt

      • Tim Shadbolt is entirely correct in what he says here and it’s wonderful to see/hear him taking a position on this – like a sleeping giant rousing from his slumber 🙂

    • Kevin 5.3

      Is this just a back door method for privatization since the amalgamation model has failed after Wellington and Hawkes Bay?

    • millsy 5.4

      ..coming from a council that handed its water services over to a multinational corporation — ie Veolia Water…

      Shadbolt and Ludlow should be looking in the mirror here.

  5. Robertina 6

    ”I wish I had that power, man, that would be power.”

    Perhaps little man Trump was being sarcastic, but it’s another disturbing sign of what may lie ahead. Good piece in Columbia Journalism Review:

    http://www.cjr.org/opinion/donald_trump_hacking_nsa_russia_snowden.php?utm_content=buffer04c11&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer

    • Karen 6.1

      Thanks for this Robertina.

      Unfortunately I don’t think he was being sarcastic.

  6. Observer Tokoroa 7

    . “The more things change the more they stay the same”

    . It is not actually true. However the USA never changes.

    . Each American is a Hollywood Star. Because life is a fiction fantasy.

    . Each American politician and President bombs (sometimes nuclear) any race on the planet that it wishes. Supported by the American philosophy of acquisition, greed and fear. VIOLENCE is the core of the United States of America. Clothed with Disney infantalism.

    They shamelessly murder hundreds of thousands of innocent men women and children. Year by Year. Although they have never won a war since they lost Korea 1948. They keep trying to win year after year.

    So, Trump and Clinton are just Hollywood productions. Trotted out like Cinema reruns.
    .

    • Draco T Bastard 7.1

      +1

      Good summation.

    • Chooky 7.2

      Get rid of Hollywood

      …recently we have been having our own New Zealand film festival using DVDs from a local DVD shop…and New Zealand films are just fantastic …compared with much Hollywood lightweight floss and gloss and effects … Many New Zealand films have real psychological depth, original drama, sensitivity and are an aesthetic visual feast

  7. Ad 8

    The NZHerald picks up on the darkness of Trump and puts him into a little historical context:

    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11684369

    When the MSM starts going for one metanarrative over another, it’s really really hard to reverse:

    “Greatness regained” beaten by “Love Trumps Hate”

    ” Ecstasy of communal fear” beaten by “Light out of darkness”

    “Patriotism and regionalism” is still winning against “unity and common strength”

    This is fantastic for the meme battles; I’m waiting for God to be invoked more often.

    Normally, grand narratives are grand because what they narrate is the work of the social imaginary itself.

    But today, the left and the right get to expose them as democratic weapons to display and deploy. It’s no mere theatre, although it’s certainly that. It is the contest for symbolic and actual power.

    • adam 9.1

      “Those in the Labour Party who do not share the Socialist principles of Momentum routinely accuse it of bullying, of abuse and of orchestrating disruption in local party meetings. Evidence for such accusations is not offered, for such behaviour does not customarily identify itself with Corbyn or Momentum. For instance, a brick was notoriously thrown through the window of the local office of Angela Eagle who, for a few days, was expected to run against Corbyn for the leadership. No individual was ever identified as the perpetrator. And what was even more pertinent was that the window was not of Eagle’s office but of a politically neutral staircase on the other side of the building. Nonetheless, it was widely taken as read that this act illustrated the villainy of Momentum.”

      Interesting…

      It gets worse really

      “Carole Malone in The Mirror[9] accused “thugs acting in Corbyn’s name” of making death threats to Angela Eagle and to her fellow MP Luciana Berger. Berger promptly responded in a tweet that “the man who sent me those messages has nothing to do with @uklabour”, but Malone issued no correction or apology. The hate that columnists like Malone loudly deplore instead fuels their own carelessly damaging prose.”

    • Observer Tokoroa 9.2

      .
      Kevin – thankyou for linking to a great piece of observational writing by W Stephan Gilbert. !

      Each of the players stripped to the bone. Blair – the Thatcherite – Kinnock a demented democratic turncoat Lord. Smith a despicable narcissist. Eagle a Liar about her silly window. and on and on.

      Jeremy Corbyn, the most respected member of Parliament; the least selfish and the least grasping fingers of any member of Parliament – throughout his 33yrs service.

      The Press hate him; The Tories hate him and ridicule him; The Labour Party of which he is Leader hate him with pathetic slander and appalling self aggrandisement.

      His 123 appearance supporting “Remain” as against lazy Labour colleagues hardly opening their lips in support of “Remain”. The Eagle girl did 15 appearances for “Remain”.

      As W Stephan Gilbert closes his superb article he states:
      .
      “The greatest difficulty that the anti-Corbyn MPs, the media and the Tories all share is a fact that they simply cannot stomach: Jeremy Corbyn is the most popular politician in Britain.”

      . Again thankyou Kevin.

      • Kevin 9.2.1

        No problem.

        http://www.off-guardian.com and http://www.thecanary.co are daily reading for me.

        I see the Corbyn leadership battle as the worlds ground zero for the re-establishment of socialism as the political force that will bring us back from the brink of economic catastrophe.

        Neo-liberalism is dead and that corpse needs to be buried so deep there is no chance of a resurrection. Even Grant Roberston in his Q&A (?) interview last weekend said that in his eyes ‘trickle-down’ (neo-liberal) economics is dead and cited the IMF and World Bank who also say the same.

        I believe Corbyn will be re-elected with a larger majority than before. Whether those Tory-Lites in the PLP jump before or after will be interesting.

        A real left-wing alternative, who would have thought that 18 months ago!

  8. Paul 10

    In the Guardian.

    New Zealand schoolgirls skip class because they can’t afford sanitary items.

    Girls from low-income families forced to use phonebooks, newspapers and rags to make-do during menstruation

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jul/30/new-zealand-schoolgirls-skip-class-because-they-cant-afford-sanitary-items

    • Olwyn 10.1

      Thanks Paul, a good thoughtful article, especially the wise words taken from Tony Benn: “Perhaps the hardest thing for politicians to understand, is that government no longer rotates entirely around parliament and the old cycle of inner-party policy formulation – intense electoral propaganda, voters’ mandate and legislative implementation – important as they are. Winning an election without winning the argument may well frustrate at least a part of your purpose; and conversely winning an argument may be sufficient to solve certain problems by creating an atmosphere favourable to the achievement of your objectives…Anyone aspiring to political leadership who really wishes to shape the society in which he lives has now got to devote a part, and probably a majority, of his time and skill and effort to persuading people, and listening in return to what is said to him.” The distinction between winning the election and winning the argument is very pertinent.

      • Olwyn 10.1.1

        Sorry I posted that comment in the wrong place – it was meant as a response to Kevin at 9.

    • millsy 10.2

      ..and the middle class kiwi mum and dad property investors and power company shareholders laugh all the way to the bank…

  9. adam 11

    You know it’s not often I completely agree with Boomer.

    Here is one of those rare times I think he is 100% right.

    http://thedailyblog.co.nz/2016/07/30/how-about-we-rename-the-ministry-of-social-development/

  10. Graeme 12

    Hello, where’s this heading….

    http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/82107482/dont-get-high-on-meth-hype-top-cop-and-drug-war-critic-says

    “Local gangs were only bit players in the meth trade, and the focus should be on harm reduction, rather than punishment, Detective Superintendent Virginia Le Bas told the Drug Foundation meeting on Friday.”

    On the face of it, looks like police have conceded that drug policy isn’t working and a change of direction is needed.

    “She said only a few people in New Zealand profited from meth, much of which came from China, Hong Kong, Mexico, and now Canada and Thailand.
    Some gang members or associates were themselves part of a “vulnerable community” getting exploited in the meth trade, said Le Bas, national manager of the organised crime unit.
    “It’s about reducing the harm. It’s not about removing gangs out of our society,” she told an audience of gang members, police, social workers and healthcare professionals in Wellington. ”

    Or, the whole thing’s got that out of control the gangs are asking for police help to contain the mess?

  11. lprent 13

    The site has its caching all turned back on – so it is quite a lot faster according to the remote sites.

    However I’m now running a image optimization of about 14500 images which is sucking up a couple of cores and slowing the system down 😈

    Cheers
    Lynn

  12. Wensleydale 14

    Looks a bit like Bernie actually won, and the DNC are merrily riding roughshod over truth, justice and the American way…

    https://youtu.be/L0v9tvIYpfU

  13. lprent 15

    test comment of the time

    • Draco T Bastard 15.1

      The replies tab is borked.

      Firefox 47.0 in Win10.

      • lprent 15.1.1

        Yeah, there is a function in the w3 total cache that isn’t working correctly. It is meant to cache except for specific page fragments – like personal replies. Seems a bit flakey. Might replace with a async jQuery.

        Unfortunately my great nephew (age 5 or 6) was determined to get me to reprogram his meter high robot. Or failing that, to bypass the password on his iPad that his mother won’t tell him so he could get youtube back again. I am ‘horrible’ sitting tonight..

        I will get to it in the morning if I can’t figure it out now silence has reaffirmed itself.

  14. Chooky 16

    ‘Wave of terror’

    https://www.rt.com/shows/crosstalk/353858-global-terrorism-violence-spreading/

    “Some are calling 2016 the ‘year of terror’. The recent spate of violence and death has been roundly condemned – this is as it should be. What to do about it is an entirely different question. Does the West have a double standard on what terrorism means?

    CrossTalking with Adel Darwish, Catherine Shakdam, and Max Abrahms.”