Tuwhera mike 06/02/2014

Written By: notices and features - Date published: 7:23 am, February 6th, 2014 - 112 comments
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112 comments on “Tuwhera mike 06/02/2014 ”

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Steve James 1

6 February 2014 at 7:25 am

I have a dream

A dream where every New Zealander is held to the same rules and accepted etiquette

A dream where every New Zealander contributes and pays his own way

A dream where radicals and fanatics are treated universally with the contempt they deserve

A dream where honest tax paying New Zealanders are treated with the respect THEY deserve

Sadly this dream is just that – a dream

As long as we tolerate eunuchs in government, allow activists to rule our country and happily provide a platform for welfare funded traitors to spout their diatribe New Zealand will continue to live in the past
- phillip ure 1.1
  
  6 February 2014 at 7:28 am
  
  but was it a ‘wet-one’..there..steve..?
  
  phillip ure..
  - phillip ure 1.1.1
    
    6 February 2014 at 7:31 am
    
    and that is quite a/the diatribe against the lying/thieving rightwing bastards/fanatics –
    
    – who have so blighted our lives these last few decades…
    
    ..there..steve..
    
    ..well done/said there!…that steve..
    
    ..phillip ure..
    - Chooky 1.1.1.1
      
      6 February 2014 at 9:03 am
      
      lol ..+100phillip ure
  - Steve James 1.1.2
    
    6 February 2014 at 7:39 am
    
    🙂
    - Pasupial 1.1.2.1
      
      6 February 2014 at 7:43 am
      
      SJ
      
      You’ve no idea how much I want to punch you in that smiley face right now.
    - Colonial Viper 1.1.2.2
      
      6 February 2014 at 5:56 pm
      
      Hitler had a dream like yours too.
- Pascal's bookie 1.2
  
  6 February 2014 at 7:41 am
  
  You’re out to lunch Steve.
  
  Your views their are more radical in NZ than anything spouted by Hone, or the Greens, or anyone else in parliament.
  
  You are free to hold these views obviously, because all views are tolerated, some just don’t gain traction because they are fucking abhorrent.
- mickysavage 1.3
  
  6 February 2014 at 7:41 am
  
  You seem to be very upset with the National Government Steve.
- Pasupial 1.4
  
  6 February 2014 at 7:42 am
  
  SJ
  
  Misquoting Martin Luther King Jr (who was a bit of an activist himself) to further the cause of colonial oppression on Waitangi day!
  - Steve James 1.4.1
    
    6 February 2014 at 8:00 am
    
    Pasupial – I don’t really have much respect for Martin Luther King Jr, he had no respect for women. And yes I do in fact know how much you want to punch that smiley face but that’s Ok. One of the benefits of ‘Open Mike’ is that it allows such venting.
    - phillip ure 1.4.1.1
      
      6 February 2014 at 8:23 am
      
      five people you do ‘respect’..?
      
      ..ayn rand amongst them..?
      
      ..perchance..?
      
      (you do know she ‘leeched’ (her word..eh?)..welfare for years and years..eh..?
      
      ..hidden behind/under her husbands’ name..?
      
      ..whoar..!..eh..?..
      
      ..’holy making a total sick-joke of professed ‘beliefs..!..batman..!’
      
      ..eh..?..steve..?..
      
      ..philip ure..
      - phillip ure 1.4.1.1.1
        
        6 February 2014 at 9:06 am
        
        i mean..rand ‘leeching’ (her word) welfare..
        
        ..would be kinda like me opening a burger-franchise..
        
        ..eh..?
        
        ‘phil’s beefy-burgers’..
        
        ..eh..?
        
        ..whoar..!
        
        ..did you know that about rand..?..there..steve..?
        
        ..you’ve gone all quiet..there..steve..
        
        ..having another dream..?
        
        ..phillip ure..
    - mickysavage 1.4.1.2
      
      6 February 2014 at 8:31 am
      
      It looks like he posted the same comment at Kiwiblog. The last person to do this as far as I am aware was Pete George …
      - phillip ure 1.4.1.2.1
        
        6 February 2014 at 11:52 am
        
        what an auto-eroticist..
        
        phillip ure..
        
        Chooky 1.4.1.2.1.1
        
        6 February 2014 at 12:24 pm
        
        lol
      - David H 1.4.1.2.2
        
        6 February 2014 at 1:55 pm
        
        Is Pete George’s, latest nom de plume going to be SJ ? Which probably stands for Stupid Jerk
        
        Pete George 1.4.1.2.2.1
        
        7 February 2014 at 7:48 am
        
        Stupid Jerk back at you.
        
        I don’t use any non de plume and I don’t comment here (I’ve made an exception to make this point – attempting to identify users of pseudonyms is supposed to be a serious offence here isn’t it?)
        
        phillip ure …
        
        7 February 2014 at 8:25 am
        
        petey..!
        
        ..do tell us all of your loss of faith in the pompadoured-one..?
        
        ..eh..?
        
        ..how did this come about.?..what happened..?.
        
        (.oh..!..the humanity..!..)
        
        ..have you ritualistically burnt all your posters/pics/treasured-keepsakes etc..?
        
        ..of the pompadoured-one..?
        
        ..(i am sure you will feel better about it all..if you ‘share’..eh..?..)
        
        ..and..who now..?
        
        ..does chem-trails-col take yr fancy..?..
        
        ..phillip ure..
        
        felix …
        
        7 February 2014 at 8:45 am
        
        Nice to know that even though Pete George / Steve James / Mark Richard / John Donald doesn’t comment here, he still reads every word.
        
        Pete George …
        
        7 February 2014 at 8:58 am
        
        Not surprising to see felix still up to his usual, being well aware of site policy like “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”.
        
        I don’t have proof but this looks like a deliberate false claim probably aimed at trying to start a flamewar.
        
        I don’t “still read every word” just as lprent doesn’t read every word at YourNZ but manages to notice things there that interest him. And felix is presumably well aware of blog basics like this, but chooses to perpetuate deliberate falsities – because he thinks he can get away with malicious bullshit here with immunity?
        
        One Anonymous Bloke …
        
        7 February 2014 at 9:00 am
        
        🙄
    - miravox 1.4.1.3
      
      6 February 2014 at 9:10 am
      
      “he had no respect for women”
      
      *phew* Lucky there were a few radical and fanatical people out there that led to the public discussion of disrespect of women, with an outcome that public views changed and some legislation arose to support women’s rights.
    - North 1.4.1.4
      
      6 February 2014 at 9:17 am
      
      Patronising git Steve James @ 1.4.1 but thank goodness YOUR dream/nightmare is not a reality.
      
      A society in which YOU define acceptable etiquette, YOU define radicalism and YOU identify fanatics in order that YOU might discriminate and deprive. It would be a horribly unsafe, corrupt society. And no marks for the cheap MLK rip-off.
      
      Reality is that Waitangi 2014 has been a damp squib in terms of the discord and upheaval Key’s been whining up since the weekend. Nothing more notable really than is seen in any prosaic question time in parliament with the schoolboy PM acting the fuckwit.
      
      Eckshilly there were two (Monty Pythonesque) things of note.
      
      Firstly the PM being twittered off by the GG when the PM falsely claimed that the GG got a bit of the physical stuff and the GG denied it.
      
      Secondly the PM giving new meaning to the word “effectively”. It’s now shorthand for “it never happened but we’ll act like it did and no more questions thank you and anyway it wasn’t my fault”. Really sick. And this is our PM ?
- framu 1.5
  
  7 February 2014 at 7:52 am
  
  hold on folks – weve got it all wrong about steve. Hes really talking about the act party and the corrupt voodoo ideology they dont like telling anyone about
  
  didnt know john banks was a eunuch – but it makes sense now that i think about it
Corokia 2

6 February 2014 at 8:25 am

More shit stirring by Nat Ele Ludeman on Homepaddock, her ‘word of the day’ was wairangi, which she defines as deluded, deranged etc. Oh what a coincidence only one letter difference one day before Waitangi day, ha ha, aren’t the right wing clever (not)
- phillip ure 2.1
  
  6 February 2014 at 8:31 am
  
  that’s the ludeman who is nat-rad aft radios’ token-blogger’..
  
  ..and going on appearances there..
  
  ..where said ludeman trots out a couple of inconsequential/old/tired internet-stories..
  
  ..all said in a lifeless/monotonous drone..
  
  ..said ludeman is boredom on steroids..
  
  ..and ‘wairangi’..?..yep..!..that fits perfectly into the ludeman-ouvre to date..
  
  (will that do..?..corokia..?..)
  
  phillip ure..
- Pasupial 2.2
  
  6 February 2014 at 8:35 am
  
  Corokia
  
  Shane Jones was doing the whole wairangi/ Waitangi thing yesterday too – though he’s pretty right wing in my book.
  - Skinny 2.2.1
    
    6 February 2014 at 9:59 am
    
    Shane Jones needs to be kicked out the Labour party, many of the caucus know he is very lazy. I would be very surprised if he stood in a electorate seat, not that he wouldn’t win a Maori seat since Pita is skulking off after losing his mana ‘over my dead body’ comments.
    
    However Jones is too bloody lazy to commit to doing electorate work. The protesters at Waitangi should have given him a stir up for his attitude to deep sea mining, however I hear he bought a few Maori off with some koha up there. Wait until I catch up with him, he will get the message what I think of the useless cunning prick, DC and other MPs will get others and my opinion of him too. As the only Labour MP up in the North we never see him which angers us.
    - JK 2.2.1.1
      
      7 February 2014 at 2:21 pm
      
      For a newcomer to Whangarei, Skinny, you do presume to know a lot ! Shane Jones does more than you could even contemplate in your wildest dreams …… just get back into your gossipy little tent !
- bad12 2.3
  
  6 February 2014 at 9:02 am
  
  Aah dialects, different strokes for different folks, down this way ‘wairangi’ would be more used to describe the foolish actions of the young,(and not so young), in love,
  
  ‘Porangi’, here, far better encompasses deluded, deranged, mad…
- Ron 2.4
  
  6 February 2014 at 9:43 am
  
  Why does Ludeman get so much coverage on National Radio. I know she is a senior figure in National Party circles down south but honestly do we need to be inflicted with her right wing views every other day.
  I wonder why RNZ don’t introduce her as a National activist just to make situation clear, and could we also have a senior Labour activist on at regular intervals. I don’t actually think we have any Labour activists on National Radio
Yoza 3

6 February 2014 at 8:40 am

I think I’ve been banned from Kiwiblog. Every time I attempt to post there my comment does not show up in the posted comments, if I copy and paste and try again I get the ‘Duplicate comment detected’ pop-up box and still nothing on the comments section.
- phillip ure 3.1
  
  6 February 2014 at 9:00 am
  
  @ yoza..
  
  ..small blessings..!..eh..?..
  
  ..think of how much better you could spend that (wasted) kiwiblog time..eh..?
  
  ..i haven’t read the gobs of spew from those swamp-bottom-dwellers for ages and ages..
  
  ..i would guess it is still groundhog-day there..?
  
  ..still the same-old same-old shit..?
  
  ..from the same-old same-old shitheads..?
  
  phillip ure..
- Meg 3.2
  
  6 February 2014 at 1:04 pm
  
  Take it as a badge of honour.
  
  I was banned by Cameron slater because I kept calling him on his lies, his attempts to do his fathers dirty work, being a mouth piece for national etc…
Yoza 4

6 February 2014 at 8:52 am

I tried posting the following comment in the Beyond the Hyperbole’ thread: “We should expect a reciprocal arrangement where the US allows New Zealand’s IRD carte blanche access to the accounts of suspected New Zealand tax dodgers.”
freedom 5

6 February 2014 at 9:00 am

The thing with walking through the bush is once you have learnt to identify the plantlife that may irritate or poison you, you can more easily avoid it. Though their roles in the bush are important, they will be there whether we notice them or not. As will the rodents who scurry amongst them.

I am making the choice to travel on in more open ground and leave the noxious weeds of bigotry and denial to strangle themselves in the undergrowth as they fight each other for the most light. On occasion there will be barborous patches to battle through, but to make real progress they must be passed by as frequently as possible.

The election year being an overgrown bush particularly thick with the vegetation in question, means there are two choices. To hack against them, fighting the same plants over and over, making little ground as the light of the day fades, or, travel a route where real progress can be made and the view is more representative of the land you travel, leaving a clear path for others when they come across your trail. This is surely better than laying in dank shadows, scrabbling amongst rodents who are content with feeding off the decaying bounty of the forest.
- Pasupial 5.1
  
  6 February 2014 at 9:07 am
  
  Freedom
  
  That seems wise and is certainly eloquent.
  
  DNFTT is quicker to type. Though sometimes one does have to kick against the pricks; when the fortunate become too outrageous.
- RedBaronCV 5.2
  
  6 February 2014 at 9:11 am
  
  Love it, and agree, cut a fresh path don’t just respond to the rubbish they serve up. Put them on the back foot.
  - phillip ure 5.2.1
    
    6 February 2014 at 9:38 am
    
    i see red baron has continued that ambulatory-metaphor/theme..
    
    ..’foot..’
    
    ..very good..!
    
    phillip ure..
    - RedBaronCV 5.2.1.1
      
      6 February 2014 at 1:27 pm
      
      Unintentional I’m not that creative but thank you
- Chooky 5.3
  
  6 February 2014 at 9:15 am
  
  …very poetic….but occasionally you find a treasure in the swamp which can be shouted out to the world and even change it …and yu often learn something…… even from the noxious pests…..also it can be fun jousting and hacking with the rodents (where is possum?)
  
  native orchids
  http://www.nativeorchids.co.nz/Sun_Orchids1_LR.htm
  
  native clematis nz
  
  http://www.google.co.nz/search?q=native+clematis+nz&espv
  
  so it is worth some bushwhacking…especially when travelling with fellow comrade bushwhackers…who exchange travellers tales and knowledge and experience
- Ron 5.4
  
  6 February 2014 at 9:48 am
  
  now if only the original verse had been in iambic pentametre (5 feet) it would have been getting near perfection.
Morrissey 6

6 February 2014 at 9:32 am

“What does it mean to YOU, mate, to be a Kiwi?”
Thoughtful commentary from thoughtful commentators
The Paul Henry Show, TV3, Wednesday 5 February 2014
Breakfast, Television ONE, Thursday 6 February 2014

On TV3’s Paul Henry Show last night, Waitangi Day preparations provided the perfect chance for the host to express his disdain for Māori people and Māori culture. First of all he unwittingly, but appropriately, channeled Stalin and sneered at the protestors as “wreckers and haters”, and endorsed Winston Peters’ harebrained call for them to be banned.

Late in the programme, after an advertising break, he threw to Jesse Peach, who was daringly alone in a room full of Māori kids. The Māori kids were in a circle, singing and dancing on the spot. This failed to charm the host….

PAUL HENRY: [sardonic, irritated expression] What are they DOING?
JESSE PEACH: I’ll ask them a question. …[He walks into the group of kids]… Hey guys, I’d like to ask you: what does Waitangi Day mean to you? [He thrusts his microphone in front of a startled little girl, aged about eight years old.]
LITTLE GIRL: Ummm. ….[giggles]….I dunno….

Back in the studio, the host is not impressed….

PAUL HENRY: [frowns] That’s not a very good start. …..[frowns again]….

Over on Television One this morning, the contempt for Māori was missing, but the quality of the dialogue was as dreadful as we have come to expect…..

RAWDON CHRISTIE: What does it mean to YOU, mate, to be a Kiwi? What’s the ONE thing?
SAM WALLACE: [Long pause, and baffled look] That’s a GOOD QUESTION. ….[baffled expression continues]….Hmmmmm…. The summer. And Māori culture. It’s something that makes us unique.

…Long, thoughtful pause…..

RAWDON CHRISTIE: I asked my three kids the same question. The first one said this is a place where racism is wrong. The second one said New Zealand is a place where you can say what you like. And the third one, the six year old, said New Zealand is a place where there’s not much danger.
NADINE CHALMERS-ROSS: [to camera] So tell us, what does being a Kiwi mean to YOU? Some of the people get a bit fed up with all the politics on the day, but what does being a Kiwi mean to YOU?
RAWDON CHRISTIE: Good question!

At this point, I could take no more….
- North 6.1
  
  6 February 2014 at 9:46 pm
  
  Morrissey I chuckle deep at the picture of you resolving you could take no more.
  
  I know how you feel. Seeing and hearing His Effeteness who strictly is entitled to call himself PM and looking at the carpetbaggers of the Iwi Leaders Forum all gladhanding His Effeteness I felt very much the same.
  
  That’s why I didn’t leap in the car and travel the 19 kilometres from my place to Waitangi today. There’s a rotten stench over there today. I’ll go and see my Haruru/Waitangi whanaunga on the weekend.
phillip ure 7

6 February 2014 at 9:42 am

http://whoar.co.nz/2014/conservatives-dont-want-to-admit-that-economic-inequality-is-ruining-marriage-ed-and-the-other-motes-in-their-eyes/

(excerpt..)

“..that is like that other gigantic-mote in conservatives’ eyes..

..they oppose abortion..and they also oppose state support for those children when/if born..

..seemingly unable to see that the relentless demonisation of/driving into guaranteed penury/making into ‘the other’ –

– of those women considering whether to abort or not..

..actually drives many of those women to abort..

..whereas if those women knew they would face a dignified/respected/not blighted by poverty life..

..for them and their child..

..that many of them would then choose not to abort..”

(assorted anti-conservative insults follow…)

..phillip ure..
Ron 8

6 February 2014 at 9:52 am

Good interview this morning on National Radio with David C.
He was quite clear on where he saw Labour heading and offered a clear alternative to Maori Voters.
Refused to allow the host to put words in his mouth all around VG
- mickysavage 8.1
  
  6 February 2014 at 9:55 am
  
  Audio is at http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2584773/david-cunliffe-live-from-waitangi
  - North 8.1.1
    
    6 February 2014 at 10:30 am
    
    Listened to that audio clip. Strikes me that Mercep reflects that which so many interviewers are guilty of – a tending to strident negativity to Cunliffe particularly. A sort of a status quo-ism which says more or less “this better be good….”, and when it is, “Oh My God he’s getting away with too much here”…….raised voice and overtalking. Cunliffe did well. Had Mercep spluttering.
    - Bearded Git 8.1.1.1
      
      6 February 2014 at 9:30 pm
      
      Yes North-but regardless Cunliffe took Key (and Mercep) to the cleaners. Bliss!
      - North 8.1.1.1.1
        
        6 February 2014 at 10:01 pm
        
        Yes, I’m saying Cunliffe did very very well. Cunliffe has the excellent quality of trenchant response and “Back off dickhead !” without looking an arsehole.
        
        Whereas John Key is a girl really. I’m gonna get bashed for that I know. Well if you must you must you legions of super sensitive lefties out there. You form over substance ones. I don’t give a fuck. That’s the best way to say it.
- Rodel 8.2
  
  6 February 2014 at 12:16 pm
  
  Ron.. Heartily agree..Cunliffe has sharp substance..so different from the sneering lack of it shown by Mr Key. Feel a bit sorry for the interviewer trying hard to do a Gower (‘Help! I’ve lost control of this discussion..must interrupt ) interview but he may get better as the year goes on.
  I like the way when interrupted or challenged, Cunliffe becomes more forceful rather than shirty.
  Also
  Good to see Vernon Small admitting that Key is ‘ dodgy’, writing:
  “If Key goes ahead and purposely tries to give ACT and UnitedFuture an “overhang” seat that would be about as close to the definition of a gerrymander as you would ever see”
  (See Clemgeopin below..Thanks)
  
  and wonders will never cease!..did I hear P.Gower describing it as ‘a rort’ by John Key?
  
  Apple definition
  rort |rôrt|
  nounAustral. informal
  1 [ often with modifier ] a fraudulent or dishonest act or practice:
  2 a wild party.
  
  (Maybe Gower means both definitions)
  - RedBaronCV 8.2.1
    
    6 February 2014 at 1:29 pm
    
    Gower ingratiating himself with those he sees as the new rulers? “The King is dead, long live the King” he’d have made a great court toady.
    - Rodel 8.2.1.1
      
      6 February 2014 at 10:50 pm
      
      yeah..could be that..Whatever their reasons it’s nice to see the spots change a bit.
Scott 9

6 February 2014 at 9:56 am

Flying Nun legend Bill Direen will be dropping into Auckland this Saturday night to play some songs at the Wine Cellar on K Rd. Rumour has it that Direen’s set will include tracks from the tribute to Michael Joseph Savage he put together with the late and also legendary Red Mole ensemble:
http://readingthemaps.blogspot.co.nz/2008/06/bill-direens-savage-attack-on-labour.html
weka 10

6 February 2014 at 10:25 am

How to set up your keyboard for macrons

http://kupu.maori.nz/Show.aspx?page=12
- karol 10.1
  
  6 February 2014 at 10:59 am
  
  Thanks. Done.
  - weka 10.1.1
    
    6 February 2014 at 11:45 am
    
    Just doing a test because the macrons look weird in the ts text box and once posted.
    
    Måori
    
    Māori
    
    The first is me typing, the second is a cut and paste.
    
    Lynn are you around. Any idea what that is about? I’m on a mac.
    - karol 10.1.1.1
      
      6 February 2014 at 11:54 am
      
      M`a
      Hmmm…. how do you get the macron over the vowel? Above is what I get if I press the macron key then the vowel.
      - weka 10.1.1.1.1
        
        6 February 2014 at 12:12 pm
        
        On a mac, once the keyboard is set in system preferneces, I press option +letter, and it puts the macron on top.
        
        I don’t know what the macron key is. What OS are you using?
        
        There is also this option, where you can cut and paste from http://maori.typeit.org/
        
        karol 10.1.1.1.1.1
        
        6 February 2014 at 2:04 pm
        
        Windows 7
        
        ScottGN 10.1.1.1.1.2
        
        6 February 2014 at 5:32 pm
        
        Works for me on my macbook. Rātā. Can use either ` key or Option+the releveant vowel. Have a nifty little United Tribes flag icon up on the top right taskbar. Also put the german keyboard on too, cos you never know when you might fancy a glass of Grüner Veltliner.
        
        weka …
        
        6 February 2014 at 6:17 pm
        
        Yep, sorted now thanks (had reverted back to the Aussie flag for some reason).
        
        What does the ` key do?
        
        karol …
        
        6 February 2014 at 6:29 pm
        
        The ` is in the instructions you linked to for Vista and Windows 7. Following the instructions just results in this
        
        M`a
        
        weka …
        
        6 February 2014 at 6:38 pm
        
        I was asking Scott who is using a mac 🙂
        
        ok, just looked at the Windows instructions. Here’s how it works on a mac. Once the right keyboard is selected, I hold down the ` key, keep holding it down and then press the vowel key, then let go. It’s a bit different than the option +vowel, where you press them all at once. With the ` key there are a few steps.
        
        When I tried this in a text document I got a yellow colour appearing that showed me where the vowel would go. I don’t see that in the ts text box, but an underscore appears instead.
      - Draco T Bastard 10.1.1.1.2
        
        6 February 2014 at 1:56 pm
        
        You have to change the keyboard that Windows is using to the Māori one.
        
        karol 10.1.1.1.2.1
        
        6 February 2014 at 2:03 pm
        
        I did that using the instructions at the weka’s link above.
      - One Anonymous Bloke 10.1.1.1.3
        
        6 February 2014 at 6:22 pm
        
        Trying this: I’ve been getting macrons from the extended character map up til now.
        
        `a
        
        hmm. Hasn’t worked. Investigating!
        
        One Anonymous Bloke 10.1.1.1.3.1
        
        7 February 2014 at 6:46 am
        
        āha!
        
        I needed to reboot first.
        
        Thanks Weka.
Clemgeopin 11

6 February 2014 at 10:52 am

A nice article on our electoral system:

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/opinion/9689695/Key-and-the-moral-mandate
- veutoviper 11.1
  
  6 February 2014 at 12:00 pm
  
  Thanks for the link. Well worth reading – and a bit of a surprise from Vernon Small.
  
  For those who have not read it, Small addresses Key’s ‘moral mandate’ remarks re the largest party having first go at forming a government – and disagrees. The article also covers failure to act on the Electoral Commission recommendations, dodgy deals with one man band parties, and the overhang allowance.
  
  Small’s conclusion
  
  “If Key believes in moral mandates the least he could do is put the commission’s suggestions to a referendum and let the people decide on the rules that elect their representatives and their governments.
  
  That would be far more meaningful than a vote for the colours on a rectangle of material flying atop a flagpole.”
- Draco T Bastard 11.2
  
  6 February 2014 at 2:21 pm
  
  (It’s ironical that one of the main arguments against lowering the threshold is the fear small parties will proliferate, yet the deals with mini-parties do just that.)
  
  Something tells me that the “fear” of small parties in parliament is more about the large parties not being able to control who gets in rather than an actual fear of small parties.
  - veutoviper 11.2.1
    
    6 February 2014 at 8:19 pm
    
    Exactly, Draco. Sorry, don’t have time to expand on that.
joe90 12

6 February 2014 at 12:15 pm

No words for this shit.

You might think that the days were gone when elementary school kids would work long hours in the field picking crops, but that’s the reality at farms across the country.

The minimum age required for children to work in agriculture is 12 years old, but a Fusion investigation found kids as young as 8 and 10 years working in tobacco fields in North Carolina.

The presence of children in the agricultural sector isn’t a secret. Roughly 400,000 children work in agriculture every summer in the United States, according to The Association of Farmworker Opportunity Program.

Studies show these children face a high risk of dropping out of school, getting injured, or experiencing other serious health issues like heat exhaustion or green tobacco poisoning. Efforts to be better regulate the child labor have been pushed back by the farm lobby.

In this video, investigative reporter Rayner Ramirez visits the fields, talks to the young workers and their parents, and confronts farm industry officials about the persistence of child labor in agriculture.

http://fusion.net/fusion_investigates/story/year-child-picking-tobacco-419577
North 13

6 February 2014 at 12:21 pm

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=11196754

No Rudman, they need sacking. For being big fish bullies in little ponds. Like Mr Unrepentant Fucked Old Bully Mr Al Kirk principal of Whangarei Boys High School.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/northern-advocate/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503450&objectid=11195207

Sometimes looks do matter.
- srylands 13.1
  
  6 February 2014 at 9:29 pm
  
  Did you miss this bit in the article?
  
  “The fees were for things that the students had done in previous years – such as sports teams, school trips, Rubicon programmes – and not for the voluntary donation.”
  
  These parents should pay up.
  - North 13.1.1
    
    6 February 2014 at 10:12 pm
    
    So fucking what SSLands……..discriminate against kids over something they have no power to fix and then expect them to respect you. Get fucked you Nazi !
Naki Man 14

6 February 2014 at 1:40 pm

Poverty is the reason our children are failing at school. Or not???

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-26015532
- McFlock 14.1
  
  6 February 2014 at 1:55 pm
  
  a simplistic statement from a simple-minded fool who links to a simplistic corelation story and clams a causation argument
- weka 14.2
  
  6 February 2014 at 2:03 pm
  
  What are the differences between the poor communities in the UK and those in Asia?
  
  You can’t figure out everything using statistics.
  - Naki Man 14.2.1
    
    6 February 2014 at 2:37 pm
    
    The Asians that I know are very hard working and very disciplined
    They also show a lot of respect to their parents and do what they are told.
    It is always easier to blame someone else than face up to your own failings and then do something about it
    Or in McFuck’s case just abuse people with evidence that he can not explain.
    - McFlock 14.2.1.1
      
      6 February 2014 at 6:58 pm
      
      well, I could have bothered trying to explain it to you in tiny words, but then you’re the sort of idiot who’d reduce complex issues of resourcing, approach to education, diversity in governing systems, and social support for children, all into the profound statement “The Asians that I know are…”.
      - North 14.2.1.1.1
        
        6 February 2014 at 10:28 pm
        
        You lost Nacker halfway through the second line McF. He/She uses blogs to improve His/Her writing skills. Probie told Him/Her to do it. Part of the therapy. Getting there.
    - mickysavage 14.2.1.2
      
      6 February 2014 at 8:13 pm
      
      Poverty is the biggest reason. If you are looking for one and one only reason for educational failure you will be really disappointed.
      - Rodel 14.2.1.2.1
        
        6 February 2014 at 11:15 pm
        
        .
        Mr Schleicher’s spurious pisa tests are almost aptly named.
        The bogus ranking of countries (itself a spurious exercise) doesn’t explain why parents of those supposed high ranking countries,especially Korea, China, and some Japanese are bringing their kids here in droves because of our state education system unlike theirs, teaches kids ‘how to think, not what to think’.
        (Thanks to CV…. wanted to use that quote for a long time)
blue leopard (Get Lost GCSB Bill) 15

6 February 2014 at 2:46 pm

I have rather belatedly responded to the fascinating conversation about Lakoff & Caleb Rosado’s article (which I very erroneously thought was written by Paul C Gorski) on yesterday’s Open Mike
Philj 16

6 February 2014 at 3:29 pm

Xox
Hey Phil U,
Can you please publish your vegan sausage recipe? Summer’s nearly over in Wellington. Chick peas, lentils, herbs n spices, tahini breadcrumbs? Rsvp asap Ta
Philip
- phillip ure 16.1
  
  6 February 2014 at 6:58 pm
  
  @ philj..
  
  sorry..secret-recipies..and all that..
  
  (..you will enjoy them tho’ when/if they get to market..)
  
  ..but on the wknd i will share my re-take/re-imagining on porridge..
  
  ..easy-as..no stirring/watching/slow-cook/de-facto pressure-cooker method..
  
  ..easy as..tasty as..
  
  ..it’s like having an indulgent/super-healthy-dessert..
  
  ..for breakfast..
  
  ..and the best thing to send children to school on..
  
  (‘cos of slow-release energy..and all that..)
  
  ..phillip ure..
  - North 16.1.1
    
    6 February 2014 at 10:22 pm
    
    Do you have any problem with microwave PU ? I know some people do but I’ve got a mighty one hit of the button 8 minute porridge with nuts and fruit recipe/process if you want it. All done in the time of a shower.
    - lprent 16.1.1.1
      
      6 February 2014 at 10:52 pm
      
      You take 8 minutes for a shower? I’m eternally surprised at the lengths people go to in getting clean. A long brush, harsh soap, and a really big towel….
      
      I average 5 minutes from walking into the bathroom to exiting it including the occasional shave and relief time on the toilet. Never quite sure what other people do in there. Mind you Lyn averages 20 minutes to commune. I can read a hundred pages in 20 minutes and regularly do so in the morning.
      - McFlock 16.1.1.1.1
        
        6 February 2014 at 11:03 pm
        
        I tend to still be half asleep and zone out. But then the hot water also relaxes my decrepit upper back and neck. 15mins-half hour, depending on how long I zone out for.
    - phillip ure 16.1.1.2
      
      7 February 2014 at 8:33 am
      
      share..north..
      
      ..microwaved or not..
      
      ..it’s still much better/healthier than the sugar-laden crap marketed as ‘healthy’ breakfast cereal..
      
      ..(‘send yr kids to school..!..on a sugar-high..!’..)
      
      ..if you put it here..and it gets lost in ‘yesterdays’ comments’..
      
      ..put it up again under my one on the wknd..
      
      ..phillip ure..
gem 17

6 February 2014 at 8:07 pm

South Korean father turns down a million dollars, and then refused to name his price when asked by Samsung as the company sought to deflect a compensation claim for his daughter’s illness. The Guardian previews the partly crowd-funded film Another Promise, which tells the family’s story.

‘The director, Kim Tae-yun, said he was inspired to make the film after reading a newspaper article about Yu-mi’s case.
“Friends told me not to do it, that it would be dangerous for my career,” he said. “But I’m not the one doing the fighting here – the families are. I don’t care if I’m tackling controversial or sensitive subjects, because there shouldn’t be any taboo subjects for film-makers.”
Yu-mi and her colleague were not alone. About 200 workers have made similar allegations against Samsung and other chipmakers, according to Supporters for the Health and Rights of People in the Semiconductor Industry [Sharps].
Of the three-dozen Samsung workers who filed for compensation through the workers’ welfare service last year, only two were successful, according to Lee Jong-ran, a lawyer who represents technology workers who have fallen ill.
Most of the semiconductor industry workers who turned to Sharps were in their 20s and 30s when they fell ill. More than 50 have since died.’
- Colonial Viper 17.1
  
  6 February 2014 at 8:09 pm
  
  Just a small part of the price humanity is paying for our cheap electronic consumer gizmos from Asia.
gem 18

6 February 2014 at 8:24 pm

Samsung

fixed the link.
- Finlay 18.1
  
  6 February 2014 at 8:25 pm
  
  cool
Disraeli Gladstone 19

6 February 2014 at 8:35 pm

New Roy Morgan:

Nat 47 (+3.5) Lab 33 (-0.5) Green 11 (-1.5) NZF 4.5 (+0.5) Maori 1.5 (-0.5), UF 0 (-0.5), ACT 0% (NC) Mana 1 (+0.5) Con 2.5 (-1)
- karol 19.1
  
  6 February 2014 at 8:39 pm
  
  Roy Morgan.
  
  Today’s New Zealand Roy Morgan Poll shows National (47%, up 3.5%) regaining a lead over a potential Labour/ Greens alliance (44%, down 2%) for the first time since November 2013. However, support for Key’s Coalition partners has fallen slightly: Maori Party 1.5% (down 0.5%), United Future 0% (down 0.5%), ACT NZ 0% (unchanged).
  
  Support for the Labour Party has fallen slightly to 33% (down 0.5%), while the Greens have fallen to 11% (down 1.5%), New Zealand First 4.5% (up 0.5%), Mana Party 1% (up 0.5%), Conservative Party of NZ 2.5% (down 1%).
  
  Support for Kim Dotcom’s new Internet Party is only 0.5%, and the Internet Party will struggle to win a seat with such low support while support for Others is now 0% (down 1%).
  
  If a National Election were held now the latest New Zealand Roy Morgan Poll shows that the result would be too close to call and depend on minor party support.
  
  The latest NZ Roy Morgan Government Confidence Rating is virtually unchanged at 139pts (down 0.5pts) with 63.5% (up 0.5%) of New Zealanders saying New Zealand is ‘heading in the right direction’ compared to 24.5% (up 1%) that say New Zealand is ‘heading in the wrong direction’.
  - karol 19.1.1
    
    6 February 2014 at 8:46 pm
    
    Oh, and this little bit from Roy Morgan –
    
    “However, despite this week’s improvement for National the latest Roy Morgan New Zealand December Quarter employment statistics show 19.8% (up 2.7% since the September Quarter) of New Zealanders are unemployed or under-employed. A total of 519,000 New Zealanders (up 69,000). For John Key and National to retain their current lead and stand a good chance of re-election at the end of the year, further reforms are needed to reduce labour market regulation and provide real opportunity for the more than half a million New Zealanders looking for work or looking for more work to find gainful employment.”
    
    Hmmmm…. shouldn’t the pollsters be neutral re poltical policy?
    - veutoviper 19.1.1.1
      
      6 February 2014 at 9:05 pm
      
      Pleased you added that comment from Roy Morgan, Karol – and yes, I totally support your last para re pollsters being neutral re political policy. On this occasion, Roy Morgan let their mask down.
    - Olwyn 19.1.1.2
      
      6 February 2014 at 9:09 pm
      
      Yes I was taken aback by that as well. Especially the nature of the suggestion. It would have been one thing point out that National may need to address unemployment and under-employment if they want to hold their ground, but it is quite another for them to offer neo-liberal advice as to what they should do about it.
    - Colonial Viper 19.1.1.3
      
      6 February 2014 at 9:26 pm
      
      Fascinating…Roy Morgan polling co. pretending to be a neoliberal economics think tank.
      - Anne 19.1.1.3.1
        
        6 February 2014 at 9:43 pm
        
        So the nasty little attack on David Cunliffe by Nact and their bovver boys and girls in the MSM seem to have worked. They went over the top trying to denigrate a hugely important Labour policy. To hell with poor families and poor kids is what they are really saying. We don’t care. So long as we keep onside with Key we’ll be on the pigs back!
        
        Anyone see the snide comments by the female who now calls herself Kerre McIvor in the Herald or HoS? Not a word about the policy. Just dirty little digs at Cunliffe inferring he is a tricky creep who can’t be trusted.Talk about transferring Key’s traits onto Cunliffe. I’d like tear that b—h apart – metaphorically speaking of course.
        
        Olwyn 19.1.1.3.1.1
        
        6 February 2014 at 10:05 pm
        
        It will take more than on speech and one policy release to wholly turn things around Anne. If Cunliffe’s broad outline of where Labour is going holds true(and I think it will) then Labour will build up steam as the year progresses, regardless of the Key sycophants. Unusually optimistic for me, but I believe that will happen.
        
        Anne …
        
        7 February 2014 at 9:15 am
        
        Not feeling as optimistic Olwyn. This is clearly the election year strategy – tear gaping holes into Cunliffe/Labour over every pedantic detail of policy. On it own the voters (bless their little cotton socks) would eventually see through it, but with the addition of the pro- Key/anti-Cunliffe barrage coming from the MSM Key sycophants, then the voters (damm their little cotton socks) might once again be conned into voting for that “nice Mr Key”.
        
        I hope you’re right and I’m wrong.
        
        SHG (not Colonial Viper) 19.1.1.3.1.2
        
        7 February 2014 at 2:23 am
        
        I see less “nasty little attack” by Nact and more “completely bolloxing up an entire week of media coverage and looking like a muppet” by Cunliffe and co.
    - gem 19.1.1.4
      
      6 February 2014 at 9:51 pm
      
      Not many miners are politically neutral, and Gary Morgan appears to be heavily involved in the industry, ‘striking gold’ recently according to this sydney morning herald story last October.
      
      His directorships:
      Roy Morgan Research Limited
      Roy Morgan International Limited (incorporated in USA)
      Roy Morgan International Limited (incorporated in UK)
      Elazac Pty Limited
      Elazac Mining Pty Limited
      Haoma Mining NL
      Kitchener Mining NL
North 20

6 February 2014 at 9:32 pm

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/9694172/Key-knows-Snowdens-info

Well of course he would say this, just like the Governor General got a hiding and I didn’t know about Dotcom until 8 hours ago and I truly mourned for Nelson Mandela and all the other shit this piece of vain wee schoolboy shit mouths off at the direction of a bunch of Karl Rovish lunatics in Crosby Textor Sydney.

Nine more months of being Little Churchill areshole then your “care” is over to the Secret Service in Hawaii. Best news of the year for New Zealand. ShonKey Python will go down in history (if at all) as an effete wee laddie owned by international money who nearly fucked an entire nation.
- Anne 20.1
  
  6 February 2014 at 9:48 pm
  
  Key and his Australian counterpart, Tony Abbott, will be discussing the Snowden files over dinner with a tight-knit group of offsiders this evening.
  
  Tight knit group of offsiders? Unusual language to use. And who may they be I wonder…
lprent 21

6 February 2014 at 9:52 pm

Waitangi day is a pain for Lyn to have her birthday on in terms of moderating. 400+ comments to check through with a few wines under the belt…

But her 39th birthday has past. She is now in her 40th year. Next Waitangi day will be interesting…
Philj 22

6 February 2014 at 10:57 pm

Xox
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU…
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!
greywarbler 23

6 February 2014 at 11:06 pm

On Radionz interesting report about France from 8-9pm. A French anti-semitic comedian has a huge following. He is tapping into dissatisfaction with the government and its rules. There are strong censorship laws and many young people feel they are being smothered by PC. They feel that the government is dishonest itself, and its forcing them to be dishonest when they voice opinions. And this comedian says outrageous things, hurtful things to individuals, but says it is all just free speech, it doesn’t mean anything.

Many of the young are supporting him as a revolt against traditional politics. Many support the right wing Le Pen party, which was against refugees, immigration, all the usual suspects,, but apparently has tidied its extreme image, and has a lot of support.

It seems it is popular to say forbidden things as a way of thumbing noses against the crooked politicians that they dislike, i.e., a lot of young men but also some sounding middle class. Actual statistics indicate that anti-semitism is low. But some of the population are turning their attention to Jews because they are considered to get too much attention, too much sympathy. It’s all anti social, and its transference.