Saturday, April 30, 2011

Bill English under threat from Don Brash too...

David Cunliffe MP





Finance Minister Bill English now has a threat hanging over his future in the form of ACT leader Don Brash while he is less than a month out from delivering a budget that is crucial to New Zealand’s future, says Labour’s Finance spokesperson David Cunliffe.



“Don Brash clearly has his sights set on becoming Finance Minister after November 26 in the unhappy event for New Zealand that an extreme right coalition is elected,” David Cunliffe said.



“To become Finance Minister he would have to roll Bill English. He’s rolled him before to become National leader, and he has just rolled Rodney Hide, so Bill English will be well aware how serious the threat is.



“Don Brash’s hand-picked Epsom candidate John Banks has already gone public on the importance of Brash having an ‘ascendancy’ and ‘senior’ role, and of the need to put some ‘reinforcing steel’ into National’s economic policies,” David Cunliffe said.



“It is extraordinary to see the arrogance of former National Ministers who are not even members of the ACT party dictating terms so soon.



“This raises the obvious question of how much John Key and his office knew of Dr Brash’s intentions and his coup against Rodney Hide,” David Cunliffe said.



“Has a deal already been done with John Key, despite the Prime Minister saying it would be highly unlikely that Brash would be in line for a finance role. Given Don Brash’s shabby and secret behaviour in the past, a backroom deal is not beyond question.



“New Zealand faces some of the most challenging economic times this century, and this will be a crucial Budget,” David Cunliffe said



“Helping New Zealand’s economy perform better will require clear vision, a coherent and robust strategy, and a credible plan to implement it.



“The only thing we can agree with Don Brash on is that Bill English has clearly failed to produce any of this in his first two-and-a-half years in the job.



“Now he faces the additional pressures of Don Brash’s ego and ambition breathing down his neck,” David Cunliffe said.


Acknowledgements: NZ Labour

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Jeckle and Hyde Act Party of NZ

Don BrashImage via WikipediaWell Dr Jeckle has really upset our Mr Hyde. The Jeckle and Hyde Act Party of New Zealand.

Mrs Brash's little boy Don, is looking for more mud to get thrown at him.

But seriously now, Don Brash is not in Parliament and not even a member of the ACT Party of New Zealand, yet he wants to become leader?

So by the same criteria I can take over the Labour Party from Phil Goff. Yeah right!

Neither Don Brash or Rodney Hyde have the interests of Joe and Joanna Bloggs, the average Kiwi couple wth 1.5 Bloggettes on tow, at heart, just those moronic residents of the New Zealand political Right, not the right of New Zealand.

These morons would privatise everything in sight: Would sell off our schools to commercial interests, sell off our public hospitals to the private sector and put our military forces out for tender.

But the one thing they haven't discussed yet: Could Don Brash make it in Dancing with the Stars?  Don doesn't have the surplus body fat that dear old Rodney had when he set out to dance his way to fame. But you never know do you - we may have our very own Fred Astaire. Don has proven he is pretty good at usurping somebody else's partner anyway.

Just thought of something. Don Brash and Donald Trump share the same first name. Don Juan's or Mafia Dons?

Beyond the HuttRiver

Sunday, April 24, 2011

April 25, Anzac day

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Maori statistics in the criminal system...







Maori statistics  in the criminal justice system...




It's being suggested racial profiling could be behind a disproportionate number of Maori in the criminal justice system


It's being suggested racial profiling could be behind a disproportionate number of Maori in the criminal justice system.



Rethinking Crime and Punishment is calling for a research institute to be established to look into why the system is dominated by Maori.



Director Kim Workman says Maori are imprisoned at a rate of over seven times that of non-Maori, and are 11 times more likely to be refused bail.



"That should be telling us that something is wrong with the way the criminal justice system is administered," Mr Workman says.



He says there's been little action taken by any government to look into what's behind the statistics, and if we could work out what the causes are, the number of Maori going through the system could be reduced.



According to Mr Workman, there's evidence of racial bias towards Maori, as they are more likely to be stopped and questioned by police.



"Because they're stopped and questioned more, are more likely to find out stuff, like they haven't got a current warrant of fitness, or their seatbelt's not properly fixed. And so they end up getting charged more.



"That leads to a deterioration of relationships, and can actually end up with some of those kids who might have avoided having a criminal record, getting one." Mr Workman says.


KR says: There may be some truth, but the facts will determine that whatever the reason New Zealanders of Maori descent get into trouble with the law, use drugs and abuse alcohol. They head statistics concerning gang activity in NZ too. Some will say they may have that addictive gene, and warrior behaviour. Actually it is a load of baloney - there is nothing brave in how young Maori, mainly, abuse women and children and kill babies!







Acknowledgements: © 2011 NZCity, NewsTalkZB

Sunday, April 17, 2011

National Party climbs closer to record high in latest NZ opinion poll...

National Party climbs closer to record high in NZ opinion poll...



PM John Key







Prime Minister John Key. Photo / Mark MitchellThe National Government's support has risen to near record levels while Labour's polling has fallen below the 30 per cent mark in a 3News poll reported last night.



According to the Reid Research poll, National's support was up 2.9 percentage points to 57.5 per cent, not far off the record 60 per cent it hit in the same poll two years ago.



Labour was down 3.8 percentage points to 27.1 per cent.



The Greens were down half a point to 7.7 per cent, NZ First down half a point to 2.8 per cent.



The Maori Party was up marginally at 2.5, and Act picked itself up off the floor, rising 1.1 points to 1.7 per cent, while United Future remained the cellar dweller at 0.2 per cent.



Labour also fared poorly by the preferred prime minister measure. As Prime Minister John Key rose a touch to 52.4 per cent, Phil Goff remained at 6.8 per cent.



Commenting on the result, Mr Key told 3News National was "very focused on the issues that matter to New Zealanders - they are in relation to the economy, the earthquake, law and order".



"The contrast between us and Labour is that Labour are focused on themselves."



Mr Goff, who in the past month has had to contend with the Darren Hughes affair, rumours of a leadership coup, and Damien O'Connor's criticism of the party's list selection process, acknowledged it had been "a couple of hard weeks in politics".



The poll questions 1000 voters and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.2 per cent.



Acknowledgements: Adam Bennett/ MSN News

Saturday, April 16, 2011

PETE'S KIWI WATCH - My place to rant.

PETE'S KIWI WATCH - My place to rant.

Nats to reject any deal in Epsom: Mathew Hooton...



WEEKEND REVIEW: Matthew Hooton: Nats to reject Act deal in Epsom for this year's NZ elections



Rodney Hide :The greatest remaining risk to John Key’s re-election is his handling of Act in Epsom.



It’s been assumed that Rodney Hide holding Epsom for Act helps National. In fact, careful analysis of forecast party vote indicates that if Mr Hide wins Epsom, National will only be able to govern with coalition partners. If Act leaves Parliament, Mr Key and National will be able to govern alone.



Mr Hide’s situation is desperate. Polling suggests he would lose Epsom by as much as 30 points even if National stuck a blue rosette on Donald Duck. Further probing suggests that even if Mr Key instructed Epsom voters to back Mr Hide he may not prevail.



The only scenario pollsters have identified where Mr Hide might scrape in would be if National voters believed (a) that National couldn’t remain in government without Mr Hide and (b) that it would be certain to stay in government with him.



Most probably prompted by such data, Mr Hide and his Wellington aide Peter Keenan approached the Prime Minister’s office proposing that Mr Key interfere in the local National Party selection to impose a senior minister as candidate.



The idea was that the minister would have the reassurance of a high list ranking and would default the seat to Mr Hide. Trade minister Tim Groser’s name has emerged.



Impertinence

As well as being impertinent, the Hide/Keenan proposal is against National’s interests in every respect.



First, such a cynical deal would be an enormous boost to Labour’s themes of tails wagging dogs and secret far-right agendas. After the chicanery around Labour’s list, National would forgo the moral high ground.



The toxicity of Act’s brand is now such that National’s co-operation with it does not increase the overall centre-right vote but turns a greater number of centrist voters to Labour than Act brings to the table.



Second, a prime ministerial imposition of the Hide/Keenan deal would cause dissent in the Auckland National Party, where Mr Key needs every hand on deck.



In Epsom, party members want the right to choose their own candidate and have a local National MP, and a strong field of locals, including electorate chairman Aaron Bhatnagar, Parnell businessman Tom Bowden, former city councillor Paul Goldsmith, ex-UnitedFuture president Denise Krum, and long-serving party stalwart Scott Simpson, is emerging.



Even worse, were National to submit to the Hide/Keenan proposal, a general shuffling of National’s Auckland line up would be needed.



This would include crucial West Auckland seats such as New Lynn, where, ironically, Mr Groser has built up a strong personal following after beating Labour’s David Cunliffe for the 2008 election-night party vote.



The National Party and centre-right voters in New Lynn want Mr Groser back. They would be no more impressed than the people of Epsom in having an outsider imposed on them as part of a dodgy deal.



The third problem is that Mr Groser would probably win Epsom anyway. After living with Christine Fletcher and Richard Worth, and then suffering Mr Hide, Epsom people would relish the opportunity to have an MP of Mr Groser’s calibre. Labour, Green and other voters would also be told by their parties to tick Groser.



The Winston factor

These are only the start of the risks to National of the Hide/Keenan proposal.



Were it clear National was playing silly buggers in Epsom, Winston Peters would put his name forward.



With the media having already decided the general election is over, hordes of TV cameras and journalists would descend on the Hide/Groser/Peters circus.



Mr Peters would lose but winning would not be his intention. The publicity would push his party above 5% nationally and make a Labour/Green/NZ First/Maori Party/Harawira government feasible.



The Hide/Keenan proposal is the one thing that could make Phil Goff prime minister.



New right party

Wise heads in National are now preparing to give Act the bad news, with only one remaining argument in favour of capitulating to Mr Hide and Mr Keenan: that while such a deal might risk the 2011 election, National may need Act in 2014.



The opposite is true.



Act is so discredited as a serious political force that talks have been held about a credible new party on the right. The most important factor preventing it has been doubts that Mr Hide and his dwindling band would co-operate by folding Act’s remnants into a new structure.



Two parties to the right of National, competing for the same votes, would each doom the other.



Plan B is now in play. It involves Act being put out of its misery in 2011 so that a credible new party has three years to establish itself before 2014.

Acknowledgements: NBR on Mathew Hooton

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Japan doing better in getting emergency housing for their homeless than New Zealand...

There seems to be more emphasis on opening up the CBD in the earthquake munted  New Zealand city of Christchurch than getting accomodation for the homeless people in the eastern suburbs - at least that is how many people out there think anyway.

Lets compare the earthquake and tsunami  affected areas and nuclear power radiation poisoned areas of Japan , and the situation in the damaged  NZ of Christchurch, in regards to supplying temporary housing for the homeless.

Japan should have 35 thousand homes available by the end of the month -  whereas the John Key National government is still at the tender process. When will NZ have housing available for the homeless there?  They may havee to spend most of the winter in their unheated garages and tents, perhaps?

New Zealand is not some over-populated asian country, but supposedly a first world country off Australia in the South Pacific. Could have fooled me!

Monday, April 4, 2011

Price on Marshall - a sneaky journo from a NZ Sunday paper...

Image representing Facebook as depicted in Cru...Image via CrunchBase


Price on Marshall...

Lawyer Steven Price writes:

I have been contacted by a student at Victoria University who said he was approached by the Sunday Star-Times’ Jonathan Marshall at university last week, on the hunt for information about the 18-year-old at the centre of the Darren Hughes incident.

He said Marshall asked him to go to a university office and pretend to be a long-lost friend of the 18-year-old and ask for his class timetable. The student refused, saying this was a “morally bankrupt” thing to do, and good on him.

If true that would represent a new low in an already tarnished journalistic career. Marshall's style of tabloid journalism is the sort we associate with UK red-tops like The Sun. It's a style I don't particularly like.

Price continues:

I note the Press Council’s principle on subterfuge states:

The use of deceit and subterfuge can only be condoned in cases when the information sought is in the public interest and cannot be obtained by any other means.

I don’t think there can be much doubt that Marshall was trying to use deceit and subterfuge here, even if he was enlisting someone else to do the actual dirty work. Was it, then, really in the public interest? And mightn’t there be other ways of getting this information?

Price also reports that Marshall has denied engaging in any such activity, and that Marshall's editor is backing him up to the hilt. So whose version of events is true?

And why is the SST editor so confident there has been no wrongdoing? Has he spoken to the person who made the allegation?

Or is he just reflexively protecting his prized asset? Just as he weekly defends Michael Laws for writing indefensible hate-filled dross because it helps to sell papers?

True or false? Not surprising some would suggest.


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