Quote of the Week

From Tim Blair

"He’s the parliamentary equivalent of an internet troll. "

On Labor's loon, Stephen Conroy.

Of course, New Zealand has it's very own Winston Peters

A VERY LOUD SILENCE.

A little fraud might have been narrowly  avoided by the Tax Payers in the West Islands but I do not think the muppet media here will tell us anything about it.

Tony Abbot has had a fist full of embarrassment smeared on his increasingly smug face.

Faceless Liberal and Labor party fixers connived to rort  over 50 million dollars in federal funding for politicians every three years based on the number of primary votes they garner at the ballot box at 33 cents a year total $1 a vote..

The dishevelled remnants of Aus Labor not yet facing corruption charges set up this additional funding stream using the erroneous argument that it would free candidates from being forced to accept funding from wealthy backers hoping for political favour in return.

I didn't see any proscribing of the massive union support for the labor party.

Last Friday Abbot whose judgement appears sometimes unfathomable, wrote to the party fixers of labor indicating the Liberals would support the scheme. Dumb dumb dumb.

In the last week, it can indeed be a longtime in politics, first Rob Oakshott broke ranks, followed by other independent MPs who have earned much opprobrium for their support of Gillard, then the National coalition partners and Lib back benchers saw trouble ahead from voting themselves massive federal funds when the latest budget had a 19.3 billion deficit.

Today Abbot had to eat a dead rat in public with repudiation of his letter of last Friday and wipe much egg from his face and announce that the proposed bill was dead.

I have always held the view that political movements should find the funds from their supporters with appropriate safeguards of transparency of donations,
If funding is not forthcoming then that indicates support is not there among the citizenry so game over.

Using money taken from me under duress to fund a political ideal that I am philosophically opposed to is
an anathema.

I CONSIDER THE CHILDREN HAVE BEEN CHEATED,

but not by Hekia Parata.

The last 33 months have only made recognising the serious need for a revamp of education infrastructure in Christchurch much clearer to all but a few and the time to do it was now.

The "Intermediate" structure for education has been abandoned in nearly every jurisdiction it has been tried.

Much angst has been promulgated by vested interests and their MSM allies about dislocation of children associated with school closures and consolidation.
FFS children attending an Intermediate School suffer one more traumatic move in the normal move from "primary" to "secondary" and two more than those pupils who attend an Area school from year one to year 13.
Other children have so many moves they lose count due to parental employment, relationship chaos or demographic outcomes.

Much of the "change" that has been seized upon by those seeking to get their POV on the Telly have ignored a rare opportunity to allow the students to assimulate how life is in the real world.

Instead of the idiotic mob reaction with the associated placards, tears and overt emotions, why did the leadership not use it as a working model of how demographics, industry closures, economic developments can impinge on the small part of society the school represents.
No, bash the gummint, elevate change to a traumatic disaster, preserve sinecures, ignore how change can be managed positively for progress are all much more attractive options for a group of idiots who would not see an opportunity if it smacked them in the mouth.

My generation was fortunate in that most if not all our teachers and management personel had been formed by one or two world wars and the great depression,  life sans WWF, unemployment benefits, sickness benefits, decile rankings, poverty, making the best of any given situation had shaped a self reliant, responsible psyche that recognised actions have consequences.

The mob rule response by teachers and administrators using children, some of whom were vulnerable, to preserve their comfort zone has a potential for far more damage to those children they claim to protect, than the simple fact that schools are an evolving part of society at large.

I could drive anyone around the area I grew up in or where we currently live and show evidence of schools that have been recycled or in many cases, no evidence they ever existed except in the historic record.
A classic is the old Takamatua School on Highway 75 that is now a remote learning center/camp for Chisnallwood Intermediate one of the original schools in the reorganisation that has subsequently been reprieved. How nice if that asset set up with some non school effort could have been available to a greater user base.

A SIMPLE QUESTION, IT SHOULD BE.

PM, SIS, GCSB, David Shearer,
Deputy PM and Finance, Norman,
Assistant finance, finance regulation, Parker,
Foreign Affairs, Peters,
Economic Development, Little,
Maori affairs, Mahuta,
ToW settlements, Sharples,
Health, King
Environment, Turei
Welfare, Harawira,
Education, Maroney,
Union Affairs, Fenton,
Housing, Twyford,
Tertiary Education, Clarke,
Justice, Robertson,
A. G. O'Rorke,
Police, Prosser,
Woman's affairs and Racing, Ardern,
PI Affairs, Wall,
Communications, Curran,
Infrastructure, Genter,
Seniors and Superannuation, Goff,
Children and young persons, Hipkins,
Alcohol and drug Addiction, Williams,
Auckland Minister, Hughes,
Arts and Entertainment, Jones,
MPI, O'Connor,
Leader of the House, Cosgrove,
Christchurch rebuild, Dalziel if available or Dyson,
Speaker, Mallard,
High Commissioner to London Cunliffe.

If that is not  graphic enough, toss in the necessary 250 000 analysts, communications staff and bureaucrats to administer the new governments many announced initiatives and the new ones required as so far traction in the polls is just not happening.
Including Kiwi Build Kiwi Power, Kiwi Printing, CGT, FTT, Carbon Tax, Rich prick Tax at 75% and then pay many more not to work.

Three recent polls have National able to govern alone and the greatest danger from that scenario is the emboldenment of the right wing nut jobs, single issue dissidents and poorly motivated voters staying away from the booths  to make a stupid pointless protest and handing the coalition from hell the treasury benches.

Politics is the art of the achievable, like it or lump it that is what Key and co are delivering.
One of the daggers to the heart of Clark's administration was voters failing to vote, and a significant cause of that was dislocation, disillusionment and disconnection.

Parliament operating in an absence of an effective opposition is fertile ground for bad government.
That was the case in the early years of Helengrad and so far Keyburg is in similar territory.

Unremarked By Comatose Media

I refer to the fact that the Labour machine was rolled by the electorate in the pre-selection for Ikaroa-Rawhiti.

What does that say about the internal machinations within Labour?

Clearly the hapless Shane Taurima would not have relinquished his cushy job at TVNZ unless he was given some ironclad promises by the Mallard gang.  He would have been told they would guarantee him the pre-selection. What happened?  How was it that when Taurimu pulled the rip cord, his parachute failed to open, sending him plummeting to oblivion?  What went wrong?

I'd have to say the result will be very good for Labour.  A first class candidate has been selected - Ms Meka Whaitiri.

And a pretty good looking chick, if I may say so.

To me it looks like a significant weakening of the malevolent influence on the party of the union stooges, most of whom are second rate in all respects. .On the surface, it appears this is a sign that, at last, Labour is on the road to recovery with the selection of a first rate candidate, not of the union movement.

The big question will be:-

Will she cast her caucus vote for Cunliffe when there is a spill?

If there has been any informed commentary on this interesting development, I have not seen it.

I'd appreciate any links to such commentary from commenters.

THE ACTION OF AN IGNORANT SAVAGE

Last night you were treated to the 'edifying' sight on TV of  John Harawira spitting on the floor of Parliament as his response to the announcement by Government of a free breakfast initiative for decile 1-4 schools.

His contempt for the norms of behaviour and his contempt for the institution of Parliament confirm that Harawira, as the Minister of Maori Affairs in-waiting in a Russell/Shearer Government, is a wasted space and should have been strangled at birth.

Were an 'ordinary' Kiwi to do this on a Marae then all hell would break loose.   It appears to me that as far as Hone is concerned we are prepared to cut him some slack just because he is what he is.

Count me out on that.   A spade is a spade and John Harawira is an ignorant savage.

ONE SMALL STEP FOR MAN -----------

Actually it is just another step to degradation of the human spirit welfare creates.

Let us disregard the efforts of loving and caring parents who strive to provide for their offspring.

Breakfast for all in "Decile one Schools", or will that be decile twos also.

What about the disadvantaged family in a decile eight school with a deceased dad?

Why not lunch?

How about we address the substandard beds and bedrooms of houses some "CHOOSE" to live in?

I  know, lets put all children into a state run boarding school then no-one will be missing out and the statists will  have all their wet dreams come true.

There is an upside,  think about how we have advanced the aspirations of the dropkick parents, they gotta be pleased.

First they came with the breakfast for a few and I did nothing.

VERY GOOD FORTUNE METHINKS.

In September 2010 on the 4th, Canterbury was jolted awake at 0430 by a seismic event centered near Charing Cross on the Plains. Well we wern't as we were in our Mobile Home at McLeans Island and our little dogs had been unusually restless for over 30 minutes.
That was the first of over 10 000 events, one of which on the 22nd February 2011 took many lives.

At present there is a "slow slip" earthquake of similar magnitude ocurring  to the west of Wellington where the Australian  and Pacific techtonic plates are in constant stress that will result only in Australia ending up a bit further away.

Wellington was where many, self included, thought a major tragedy would unfold from an earthquake, however this movement is occurring without the jolting that causes damage and chaos such as that we suffered in Canterbury.

Good luck to Wellington just keep slip slidin away.

ABC v TVNZ

And now your very own tax payer funded illiterate, Jessica Mutch or is it Sutch?

 It is now only about 18 months to go so he better start moving soon.

Where do they get these wet behind the ears idiots?

It might have been a shock to her system but not to mine, nor to any one else's who closely observes politics.

Crisis? What Crisis?

Only days ago certain bloggers and other commentators were whaling and gnashing their teeth over the absence of a reliable and politically acceptable coalition partner for the National Party in 2014.

They were slightly premature in their gloomy prognostications.

The latest batch of polls, averaged, shows National doing quite well at 46.5% party vote while Green/Labour has 31.5%.  So, when you throw out all the other wasted votes, National has over 58% of the party vote which counts.  Who would have thought MMP might deliver such a result?

Mr Key won't have to deal with Winston First who could manage only 3.6%.  Of course, the reality is National never was going to need Winston First, or the righteous Colin Craig.  Even should ACT and Dunny both disappear, National still has a fine coalition partner all ready to go.  It's called the Maori Party and on current results of the country's three major polls, such a coalition looks pretty good to me.  National will need to drop by eight percent before it 'needs' a coalition partner, so it will, again, invite the Maori Party to engage.

The Maori Party undoubtedly will do a deal with National.  They would be crazy not to.  Just think of the policy concessions they will extract - and so they should.

Economically and ideologically, Labour and the Greens are the enemies of Maoridom..  They oppose every initiative which will provide more jobs and better education for Maori New Zealanders and I think Maori people have woken up to how badly they have been conned by these socialists over the last fifty years.

One Billion Dollars Worth of Illiteracy

Australian taxpayers fork out one thousand million dollars per year to fund the ABC which, in turn, produces junk like this.

Police say three unregistered dogs who mauled a man while he was jogging in Sydney's south west will be put down.

Dogs are human now, it seems.

Poor Shane

Stuff is reporting the selection of a top quality candidate by Labour to contest the seat left vacant by the death of Parekura Horomia.

Iwi chief executive Meka Whaitiri will be Labour's candidate in the Ikaroa-Rawhiti by-election on June 29.She beat five other challengers for the nomination yesterday, including high-profile broadcaster Shane Taurima.

Other bloggers and media have covered this story extensively, so here is the vernacular version.

• Dumb Hori resigns job with big salary and lotsa perks.
• Honky socialists promise him pre-selection in an ironclad safe seat.
• Dumb Hori and Honky socialists forgot Dumb Hori is not a member of the party.
• An infinitely superior candidate wins preselection.
• Faaaaaaark!
• Dumb Hori now has no job and no prospects.
• Plans Waitangi Tribunal claim for loss of income, mana and anything else his lawyer suggests.
• Winston Peters invites Dumb Hori to join his party to balance up all the dumb Honkies already there.

Ho ho ho.

Ain't politics just wonderful?

MAYBE BIG GERRY SHOULD HAVE LISTENED.

The blogger who until today had a degree of anonymity on his attempts to expose what he saw as deficiencies in EQC's delivery of service, has outed himself as Marc Kreiger who had an employment with EQC in Wellington and just as I and many other people caught up in the serious dysfunction that is EQC's response to the Canterbury disaster, feels there is much that can be done differently to sort through the mess.

Kreiger apparently found himself in contact with Brownlie over a claim for damage and attempted to enter a discourse with the Minister to discus things that he saw could be done vastly better.
The Minister ignored what might be seen by some as an opportunity to learn some truths he will never get from puppets who depend on their avoiding scrutiny to keep their jobs.
Next move came when Kreiger was carpeted and given a written warning by his bosses.

Now I, very early on made the point that EQC was totally unprepared for the disaster as it unfolded.
The mad scramble to find an assessment team to deal with thousands of claims resulted in anyone who had the time, could write, drive a car, wear a hi viz jerkin and use a mobile phone immediately found a great job as a damage assessment person. Too bad they had no knowledge of structure, design, construction, depreciation, deferred maintenance or any of the other myriad of factors in assessing what damage actually occurred as a result of the seismic events.

Now Kreiger is facing court sanction for his,  imho laudable attempts to bring some reality to the often out of this world performance of the EQC monolith that has since been bolstered in continuing its dodgy actions by Minister Brownlies creation of CERA and the associated appointment of Fletcher Construction to a dominant role in reinstatement. A domination that has allowed shonky work practice that has to be redone, bullying those who chose to name an independent project manager or opted out completely. All accompanied by shambolic programming that is clearly influenced by "squeeking hinges" needing to be silenced,   to the clear detriment of those who just quietly waited for the process to reach them.

Minister Brownlie I consider you could have learnt something from meeting Kreiger instead of just handing his body to those who were possibly going to be exposed by his knowledge of poor performance.

You really do have to visit the place.

However a bit of research can be illuminating.

Forest and Bird describe it as a little piece of heaven on earth with "bonsai Rata" nestled in a sandstone edged wonderland with sweet lovable  snails that will be destroyed by exploiting a small fraction of the area.

What the lying fraudsters don't admit is that the climate at 600 meters asl is so freeking harsh that is the best a healthy Rata can manage and snails are about the only living creatures.

The coal on the Rochfort Plateau is some of the best in the world and was sufficiently attractive that people endured unimaginable conditions to exploit it for nearly 100 years
With access only by way of "the Incline" a standard gauge railway with gradients of 1 in 3 in places, Denniston became a thriving if isolated  mining town with many pubs and more "lodges" and churches than many more comfortable places offered. Also it was a big part of the birth of the NZLP.
The Legends make fascinating research.

Isolated, hell, with the primitive railway for access it made most lighthouses positively urban.
 Coal was loaded into hopper wagons that could be unloaded directly into the hold of a ship.
The wagons descended to Conns Creek  down the "incline with the descending loaded wagon pulling the empty "donkey wagon"  back up the single line passing at loops.
At Conns Creek the wagons were marshaled into trains for Westport and the waiting ships.
For the miners, their wives and children the primitive railway was the only way to escape and return so impulse buying was not a great problem.

Mining slowly ground to a halt in the 1960s and today the Plateau is pretty much abandoned.

With some $22 million from Bathurst to enhance the DOC estate that will still include over 90% of the area, a new access road and hopefully opportunity for all who wish to make the journey to one of the most truly isolated places in NZ, The Rochfort Plateau will become a place of interest and the desolation, harsh climate and history will be revealed so people can form a position on what the history really was.
Gee they might even work out why the bloody Rata trees resemble 'Bonsai'.

In the mean time inspite of the greens and their sandle shod tree huggers who will still enjoy their lifestyle uninterupted,  "The Coast" will get a much deserved boost and the blatant hypocrisy of them and their Labour lackies will be exposed for what it really is.

Rogues to the left of them, Rogues to the further left,

Into the valley of death rode the Lone Ranger and Tonto

Captain Mumble  will be contemplating the oblivion capsule tonight and sending his CV to the UN.

What passes for news on both TV channels tonight have released polls that would have the Nats governing alone.

The mortar bomb that only managed to cause, many first time investors to refrain from participating in the MRP float seems to have gone off in the bunker causing wounds to the generals of both partners in grebour.

Has the New Zealand electorate finlly seen what the "coalition from hell" might actually deliver inspite of the best efforts of the Lamestream media to promote Woolgatherer and his little Aussie Wetback M8.

I understand TV 3 tried to suggest that their informed  view was a little different and the NZ public were warming to the 'lunatic policy mix" of the hopeless.

Will the remnant rump of the once proud Labour party attempt to arrest the slide.
One small step to that end might have been signalled with the selection of Meka Whaitiri to fill the massive boots of the late Parekura Horomia over a rather cynical move by Shane Taurima, yet another media star,
Another very strong local Henare O'Keefe was also in the field of five.

Not the most auspicious start for the week for the NZLP chaos, I mean caucus.
As for the Melons, so long as they are in the margins who really gives a tinkers cuss,
Sadly though, on that note,   many naive well intentioned voters think their green cloak gives them  status, ignoring the massive fraud they perpetrate day by day.

Actually, yes you are trying to justify it

You kind of expect that Muslims murdering some randomly-chosen Whitey will prompt a barrage of idiocy from the loonier fringes of the right wing - from banning Muslim immigration through to which cities of the Middle East should be nuked.

However, it's disappointing to see it matched by idiocy from loonier end of the left - that this shouldn't be described as a terrorist act because it killed a soldier, and in any case it's "our" fault for invading "their" countries. Examples of this particular brand of obnoxious dumb-fuckery here, here and here.

Neither approach is completely without foundation: for instance, I can sympathise with people who want to ban Muslim immigration.  After all, it's not like Western countries are so short of adherents to totalitarian ideologies that we need to be importing them from other countries.  Likewise with the folly of invading and occupying countries run by Muslims - not exactly a sensible course of action for people who want to be seen as the good guys, you'd think.  Especially not if you embark on a course of assassination involving the deaths of most civilians within the blast radius of the strike.

However, both approaches are fundamentally dishonest. The right-wing one amounts to "Muslims are bad people" and draws heavily on "Don't like darkies," while pretending otherwise. The left-wing one stoutly declares it's not trying to justify such murders, while busily justifying them.  The left wing one bothers me a lot more because it matters to me that the left shouldn't be promoting loony drivel.

So, to address the left-wing idiocy only:

The first piece of idiocy is pretending this wasn't a terrorist act.  I think there are two cases you could make for this not being terrorism.

You could make the case that it was instead an act of irregular warfare against an occupying military force.  But that has a couple of problems. First, the irregulars involved were British, just like the soldier, so the military force isn't occupying their country.  One of the murderers referred to British soldiers killing people in "our lands," by which he meant Muslim countries; but if we accept that those actually are "his lands," we're accepting an invitation to consider every Muslim in the UK a foreigner and potential combatant. Hopefully few on the left are keen on that.  Second, if it was irregular warfare, the British Army has the right to summarily execute both of the murderers and should exercise that right unless it wants to encourage others to have a go. Tempting though it is to picture armed soldiers coming out of the barracks and hanging these two from a lamppost or giving them a pistol shot to the back of the neck, it's probably not a good thing to have happening on the streets of London.

Leftists don't seem to be doing so, but you could also make the case that it was a straightforward hate crime rather than terrorism: the murderers hold such hatred for a particular group of people that they decided to murder one.  This one is a much stronger case than the first, because there's no doubt that hatred was the motive and the victim was chosen at random merely because he belonged to the hated group.  The murderers will of course have a list of grievances that supposedly justify their hatred, but that applies to neo-Nazis murdering kebab-sellers in Germany as much as it does to these two, and no-one disputes that the German cases are hate crimes.

So, hate crime has a pretty strong case but I think terrorism is a better fit.
The case for it being a terrorist act is fairly straightforward:  Muslim activists regard murdering randomly-chosen people in Western countries as a means of terrorising the relevant population into demanding that their government meet some particular demand the terrorists have (the fact that it's a stupid idea that never works is irrelevant here, it's what they think that counts).  This murder seems to fit that mould quite well: the murderers are Muslim activists and they took the trouble to spout a deranged political manifesto to passers-by.  A counter-argument would be that this victim was only randomly chosen to the extent that it didn't matter to them which soldier they murdered, but the intent of the crime certainly does fit the description of terrorism.

The second piece of idiocy is pretending that terrorist murders are no different from what "we" are doing in Afghanistan and a few other places.  This one is simply moronic. For there to be no difference, "we" would have to be randomly targeting large gatherings of civilians for attack, or selecting some individual for murder as a solely symbolic representative of some larger group.  The fact is that Western military forces are not doing either of those things.  You can certainly make a case that bad things are being done in the names of the countries involved, but attempting to equate them is like claiming a cat is no different from a cow because they both have four legs and a tail.

As to be expected, the Guardian has someone who can put this stuff better than I can.

WHY DONT ALL THE ECO FASCISTS JUST F**K OFF

For nearly all New Zealanders the Denniston Plateau might as well be The Simpson Desert and there is a better than even chance they would actually visit that god forsaken place as an alternative.

Limp Smith takes a step along the tortuous  path to make a bit of wealth out of the vast mineral reserves of NZ  and the lamestream media immediately give oxygen to the luddite oppose everything dumbarse hypocrites.

If all the protesters who have no material stake in The Coast, plus those who live there because it is cheap and work is not going to cause embarrassment to their lifestyle,  then toss in those who see protesting mining no matter how stupid and idiotic as a good thing, just buggered off, the whole protest movement would  disappear in a puff of coal dust.

Not content to accept a contributing input  to the tragic Pike River clusterf**k through manipulating and countering good practise with stupid and ultimately fatal conditions with that event.  Tree huggers and snail lovers are again out in force to prevent The Coasters, ie those who actually want to work for a better future, from yet another move to advance a little bit of prosperity .

The project involves just 5% of the land area of the Plateau, will create well over 200 jobs plus whatever downstream economic advance for the 'Buller' the project delivers.
25 years after ending the extraction only a minimal number of the already small group of citizens who will have observed any of the activity there, will be have precious little remaining evidence  that in excess of one bilion dollars has been created from stuff all and with a minute impact on the remaining 95% of that desolate place.

Oh access will be vastly improved  but Luddites would not see that as an advance.

Then again would kneejerk opposition to mining per see be the main object here?

CRIPES THAT'L KNOCK pOVERTY OFF THE FRONT PAGE.

Ford has announced what only the most severely afflicted "dumbarses" refused to believe, The Ford Falcon is going where the Spitfire Fighter and the Lancaster Bomber went.
The pages of History.

I owned 3 in succession, starting with an XA then an XD and my last was an XE.

Wouldn't you know it but in spite of a Ford  Executive announcing when the GFC hit the world that Ford US would review all production and niche markets, a dinosaur union leader in Ford Australia claims consultation and negotiation could have avoided this outcome.
It is an outcome that should have come well  before the GFC.

The Falcon with its 50 plus years of head to head with the even more iconic Holden Commodore, has been a significant part of the Australian and New Zealand  social, commercial, and motor sport landscape.
Rear wheel drive, v8 powered albeit with smaller engine options, roomy,  rugged and extremely popular.
It often came runner up to Holden in motor sport in the Australasian Super Cars but with the big two seeing off attempts by Nissan, BMW and others to break in.

Ford and Holden had tribal followings that endured every thing results and the reality of much about the style and finer design feature deficiencies threw at them.

That the Marque survived for so long is remarkable in its self.
Possibly the most serious problem against survival was the placing of the production model layout for a Right seat driver. It is an extreme minority position as most of the world has the controls on the left. The Marque was not suitable for most offshore markets and that made a conversion a non starter.

Farewell to the Falcoon but many memories remain.

Our XA was primarily a towing car for the ponies in their trailer. One late afternoon on the motorway in heavy traffic a massive marque steel anchor  peg  was propelled up through the wheel arch within milimeters of the LPG tank and the fuel tank. Apart from the massive wound the only evidence was a boot full of foam from a  punctured Tyre Pando an emergency tyre repair device and a totaled spare.

The XD was a Six and karatane yellow, It had to go when I commenced selling real estate as should I call in to a mate for a cuppa, the word was out their property was on the market.

The replacement was a maroon XE that fitted in much more suitably but its demise came with the House fire In 1990, it suffered paint damage and heat damage that cost the insurance company around 37 k to repair a car worth under 30k.

RIP Falcons and thankyou for all your  enjoyment and memories

To the auto workers it is sadder for you all, your belief that it would end differently is a big fail on your leadership, they knew but refused to impart the truth to you.

To the numpty union wanker, did you hear and comprehend the very pertinent comment from one erudite man who intoned that if Ford and The Australian Government had addressed this inevitable outcome 10 years ago, closed down the Ford Au plants and paid each worker $150 000, every one would have been better off and a heap of money left over would have been available for more certain and rewarding paths.

A Face To Face Apology

TVNZ is trumpeting a call by a Ruatoki resident for a face to face apology after the IPCA into the "Urewera Raid" was released to day.  The report found the police were justified in all their actions exept those in which some people were unlawfully detained while their houses were searched.   In response, among other things, the police commissioner said:-

"(However) For those who were involved in the investigation, no apology at all. Bearing in mind we found 16 firearms in Ruatoki and some of them are semi-automatic weapons and we found a loaded pistol under the mattress of one of the suspects in Ruatoki."

Adolf agrees there should be a public apology.  Yes.  Let's have an apology.

From the kaumatua and elders of Ruatoki, to the law abiding, tax paying people of NZ, for knowingly harbouring Tame Iti and the rest of his back arsed gang of terrorists (and the dopey white arsed ones too) in their midst.

ANOTHER POWER PLAY BY NZLP HEAD OFFICE.

Rumours are rife that another stitch up is underway in Horomia's old seat.

Big city, gay media star Shane Taurima has tossed in his job in what would be a lucrative and influential position in Maori Media to run against a couple of strong local Labour stalwarts.

With names such as Paul Tolich and Sue Moroney in the dark hole with Shane is there any doubt that the rainbow, union hacks and university trained factions are using their muscle to prevent a local gaining what should be a decent link to the grass roots of the party.

I am left wondering where the "fairy tale" legend that grew with impending death approaching, clearly respected, loved, local boy Parekura spent what time he had left seeking a succession for his people from amongst them went. Did he visit with Shane who until after the death of the big man was occupying multiple positions in Maori Media.
Ignore the inconvenient fact that for Head Office to have their way, Taurima has said he has not been a member of NZLP and a waiver rule that Goff's mob used without shame to bring another media star into Porirua, the man with the prodigious memory Kris Fa Foi, over a strong local candidate.

Mana and Te Maori party will be encouraged if a parachute is added to the succession scrap, even the Nazi leader ceased using  paras after the Battle of Cyprus.

Dick and Dora

Sixty years ago New Zealanders learned to read with Janet and John.

Australians had Dick and Dora.  (The Cook still has her book.)

Australia still has Dick and Dora and here they are:-

Dopey Dick

and Dumb Dora

All you need for evidence is here.

MORE EXTREME TOSH,

and apparently to the entire MSM, there is nothing to challenge, just a message to promulgate for the pretend greens.

I humbly proclaim I am one, a genuine one with a track record of actual effort, with a love of, and an inherent desire to protect and hopefully hand on to those who come after me, an environment stronger, richer and more secure than that which I came to over 7 decades ago.
A progression involving a succession of ownership/stewardship involving more than half a dozen properties.
I know my philosophy will always be be alien to some as it comes with a very conservative attitude to how the world works, and to me there is no conflict.

An example, removing invasive weeds using minimal spray and often substituting manual targeted systems for blanket control systems. I am appalled, how roadside weed control is high volume spray coverage of many square  meters to target the base of a road marker or an isolated weed.
Recently, while fishing on the Ohau Canal, a couple of Meridian employees caused an interruption to my idyllic reverie requiring me to move, to allow significant over application of roundup to small Toitoi growing at the waters edge. My inquiries revealed the plants root systems apparently invade and damage the "seal" allowing increasing amounts of water to "escape". The neighboring Tekapo/ Pukaki Canal has recently been drained to allow reinstatement of the integrity of the walls around the elevated parts where that canal crosses the Highway south of Tekapo.
Two factors of this poor practice entered my thoughts.
Ignoring cost factors and operator comfort, why not use a knapsack sprayer, minimise volume and spray only the target plant instead of the spraying of perhaps three or four times the area around the offending little Toitoi plant and the adjacent water.
Secondly instead of the utility vehicle, traveling on the canal road with its tank of mixed weedicide, the high volume pump and associated gorse gun, perhaps a small water craft,  aiming less and better targeted spray and  avoiding it landing on the canal water.

I digress, I have always been what I consider a responsible environmentally aware person should aspire to, in most of my actions.
Therefore it grieves me greatly that a bunch of communist, racist, statist hypocrites continue to cloak themselves with a "green" cloak of justification" as they blunder about attempting to wind the economic clock back in a wide eyed move to the power and material rewards of government, accompanying  their clear desire to micromanage every citizen and their actions to fit their manipulative ideals.

The "Greens hypocritical  propaganda" includes;
Preaching inane mantras on sustainability when the only credible outcome of their policy mix will be mass starvation, deprivation and economic destruction of much of the advance made by man through time.
Oppose every proposal for economic,  industrial and agrarian expansion, offering no specific alternative other than idealistic vague uncosted dreams that will turn into nightmares.
Ignore communication advances and expend considerable resources traveling around the planet preaching "salvation" to small ignorant bunches of "adherents" who would not recognise progress if it crashed into them head on when  leaving yet another airport
Rabbiting on about poverty among some 200 00 of our nations young, most of whom are really living in a state that is nothing close to genuine poverty, with a small percentage  who are really only deprived of basics by dopey incompetent parents driven by false signals from a welfare system that removes responsibility and good decision making capability and replaces it with an entitled expectation.
Ignoring the patently obvious deprivation inflicted on the very poorest in the world, resulting from diverting increasing volumes of world grain production to Biofuel, a practice  that only continues through massive subsidisation  while totally opposing and attacking the safe and clearly obvious beneficial fuel extraction advances of  hydraulic fracturing.
That total and inane opposition is predicated on a base desire to punish and destroy commercial energy companies and the salient if very annoying fact that that process has the US almost back to a self sufficient status in  carbon based energy production, Even more galling to the green manipulators must be the obliteration of the long proclaimed and increasingly  illusive Peak Oil  fraud.

In the lead up to the partial float of MRP, in cahoots with an increasingly irrelevant Labour party, Norman destroyed  millions of dollars of the savings of Mr and Mrs Kiwi, in an irresponsible last ditch move to oppose the MRP float that only reduced the price over 100 000 citizens paid for their shares and successfully, if that is the appropriate word,  scaring another significant group who were considering placing a little of their saved cash into the market in a first foray to the share market.

Bolstered  by a perceived increased status that was merely publicity based, the announced  partial float of Meridian was also threatened.
The numptys then moved with equally ignorant bullheaded disregard for convention, pun unintended, to promise to scuttle the deal in which Sky City would provide at no cost to Auckland Inc and its increasing vulnerable and threatened ratepayers, a 3000 capacity convention center costing north of 400 million dollars.
Destroying 1000 4 year long construction jobs and 800 additional Sky City jobs when the facility is running, along the way, while castigating the government for failing to create jobs, LOL.

Now the Aussie over stayer and his glove puppet Co leader have launched an attack on "exploration for hydrocarbons" in New Zealands territorial waters that they hope will stop such activity completely, thus enhancing the total fraud that they care for the environment.
Not extraction,  just having a look where reserves might be.
A major plank in support of this latest brain fart is the grounding of the Rena on the Astrolabe reef, off Port Tauranga . An event with absolutely no connection to oil exploration other than, as with all vessels that go to sea, there was oil in the ships  tanks.
Also relevant but largely unreported by a panting media, two years on, many are claiming it is very difficult to find any residual evidence on the beaches, in the  waters and around  fishing in The Bay Of Plenty, of damage from the Rena stranding.

However this latest act of sabotage of NZ Inc  is going to "save" the pristine waters and beaches of  all of Aotearoa / New Zealand, their words not mine, to which I say UTTER BOLLOCKS.

Stopping oil exploration will have absolutely no impact on preventing another vessel going aground and to link the two scenarios is yet another example of the vacuous lies promulgated by a declining MSM in the thrall of a bunch of economic saboteurs whose only motivation is to gain power over an increasingly vulnerable productive sector using the laudable cloak of environmentalism.
All in an attempt to gain the trust of and thereby the vote, of many who should know better, for a bunch of frauds who should be brought to book, or at least challenged on their false advertising.

A test for National Party supporters

1.  Go and read this post by Keith Ng.

2.  Consider what you would write in a post about a Labour government that did this.

3.  Write that post about the current government.

Your time starts now...

NOT THE RESULT MANY ANTICIPATED.

Those cheating bloody red and blacks just gave Sir J K's vastly improved men a lesson in rugby and I wonder if master cheat McCaw was even present.

Once again the team many love to hate are putting together a finish to the Super Rugby season that shows they still have the mojo.

Starting the season with an unwanted Bye then having to meet The Blues who had a game under their belt at Eden Park was a start that could intimidate most  teams and resulted in a close loss for the visitors.
Tonight that result was buried by  Blackadder's men in a clinical if close and  intense game where the 20 point separation was  decisive.

The Blues turnaround in 2013 has been impressive and Sir John has proved a winner with his unearthing of some exciting and very young talent allied with the very strong management and coaching team.
Pat Lam must be envious of the resources given to the Blues by the franchise  management this season.
I wonder if the decision to allow Tony Woodcok to go to his sad season in Otago flashed across JK's mind as Joe Moodie smashed the Blues scrum in that final quarter.

Hamilton next week will be a minor final for the Crusaders and I spare a thought for Dave Rennie's men who in spite of a season from hell injury-wise  still stand deservidly astride the NZ conference.

The record of the Crusaders Franchise is still the standard and their ability to stay there or there about, season after season, is approaching "boys own" status.

Go you good things.

WOULD IT BE A CRISIS? TRUELY?

To the economic numpties who think the idiotic scheme of  Scam 'Laurel' and Tottering 'Hardy' to scare off many first time investers in MRP,  thinly disguised  as a credible portent to a rosy future of cheaper power,  is good news, here is the latest  real world example of what can go down the toilet when the benevolent government intervenes in a market it should stay well clear of.


Venezuelans having endured many shortages and deprivations under the stewardship of the late Saint Hugo Chavez, including medicines, staples and many things that citizens of a modern state take for granted, the latest crisis is a national shortage of toilet tissue.
Under the  socialist government where the marxist Chavez ensured re-election by many nefarious ploys including massive interference in the market, wasting the oil royalties that should have ensured a rising prosperity for all but under the law of unintended consequences, merely created distortions and anomalies.

Chavez who recently succumbed to cancer left his country in the hands of his designated successor who surprise surprise managed to be "confirmed by the people" leaving that new leader to explain why the people are running out of the basic comfort of  having a roll beside the toilet for tidying up after a trip to the porcelain.
Guess who Chavez Mk ll blamed, greedy capitalists of course, it was their manipulation and  rorting, not the benevolent all caring albeit incompetent government.
Sadly many of his people will believe him - more excrement but still no toilet rolls.

To one who has his earliest memories of body waste disposal in longdrops, dunnies with cans that were removed and replaced by "night workers" ( that sobriquet has changed with the passage of time) and an occasional flush toilet, nearly all had for the final tidy up a square of news paper,  today the roll of tissue has become a staple.
 On rare occasions, nowhere as often as today, a new phone book arrived, it was the closest the system came to a dispenser.
Boarding school introduced me to that shiney 'Jeyes' toilet tissue that left news paper well ahead on points.

Back to topic, the Venezuela Government has created this latest cockup just as the patent stupidity of  woolgatherer and sub normal  will deliver,  brown outs (that is an unfortunate image) and blackouts due to the government power agency eventually failing to get the supply, demand, cost and reward triggers in balance.  Facts that every market responds to with each and every product and service  as the basic tenet of staying afloat in commerce.

Government operations in delivery of services and products that are core functions will and do fail at times, the cop in court on drug counts is but  an example, however that is what the market has to  absorb and respond to every hour of every day.
It is difficult and sometimes impossible to bring the function of the market to discipline much of that core.
Adding the power supply to that core function is, was and will always be stupid.
Electricity is a commodity that market forces and discipline will control the price of, if the Government stays the hell out of it.

However  should the wet dream of Tottering and Scam become reality, then when that goes wrong and be sure it will, then that will really be a crisis that a page of the propaganda rag wont fix.

Will the UK emerge stronger or in tears?

Following the success of the UKIP  in local elections, a growing restless rump of The Conservative Party are piling pressure on leader Cameron to hold a referendum on Britain's remaining in the EU.

O'Bama,  the Afro American of Irish extraction made an unprecedented move, seen as interference by old hands,  in the domestic government of a longstanding alliance partner,  suggesting Cameron delay any moves to placate his restless rump, warning that any withdrawal  would sideline their role as a gateway to Europe for the US.

Some of the rebelious rump are even moving to an alliance with UKIP candidates to avoid split vote annihilation or worse, an outright defeat. by them

Cameron's coalition mates, The Lib Dems are siding with UK Labour in covering their eyes and ears hoping it will all just go away, but increasing disillusionment among a significant section of the UK electorate with the profligacy and dysfunction of continental government is reflected in the rift the UKIP is creating.

Big Government is wobbling,  I too would be very sceptical if I was being asked to contribute to the waste and unsustainable welfare outcomes exposed by the GFC in Greece, Spain, Italy etal and now what Slater so euphemistically calls the "cheese eating surrender monkeys" of  m Hollande.

I lean to tears,  a ballsup looms.

The woolgatherer reveals an expanding circle of hope.

Having learnt absolutely nothing from his supernova with Rufus Painter, the hapless leader of the rabble revealed in his budget speach he has criss crossed the country and it resulted in two more pathetic cases of entitleitus.

A couple nearing 40 years old with two children, who are hard working and smart, cannot afford a first home "because their parents cannot stump up with a deposit".
So Mr and Mrs H G Up are still expecting their pensioner parents to front up with a $25 000  donation.

Case 2 in the criss cross, another hopeless couple have three kids who cant raise the $100 each to register for "soccer" ( it is football now you numpty) and only the oldest will play this season, cant afford the other two !!!!
Have they just discovered this or are they thick.
Mow a few lawns, stack some shelves, walk a couple of dogs. 5 hours each  for two weeks problem solved.

We were accosted the other day, it was really begging , to assist with kit for a sports team. I donated on the assurance the "kit" stayed with the team and was not just a clothing scam.

Forget the Criss cross,  Mr Hasnt Grown Up could be Rufus's son and the other hopeless pair his brothers spawn.
 I know, I know, it is a wet dream, eh Clint.

Please  please please don't give up, you are doing well for one so challenged.

Thanks Aaron

Aaron Gilmore delivers his final gift to the National Party

Roy Morgan:-

National Party 44% (down 2.5%) now dead-level with Labour/ Greens 44% (up 1.5%)

We are all getting older.

 

Thanks for the memories, I guess  you had to be there.

A very popular Australian folk/pop group "The Seekers" are in Melbourne on a 50th anniversary tour.

One of the Voices of the 20th century Judith Durham 69 suffered a brain hemorrhage after last nights show and was hospitalised.

Things are more positive today with Ms Durham sitting up and talking.

Ms Durham along with Athol Guy Bruce Woodley and Keith Potgier  brought their  musical gifts
 to the stage in the 1960s and it is said Judith's  very special voice is still something to cherish.

Best wishes and a speedy recovery  Ms Judith Durham.

That worked out well didn't it

Swan sat in his counting house.
Counting all his pennies.
When he reached the bottom line
He didn't have as many.

Dont worry all you girls  and boys,
We will surely save a heep
Use a rubber, play with toys,
Then only go to bed for sleep.

Last years hope has turned to shit,
Our little surplus disappeared,
The books just took a mighty  hit
A 19 billion hole has reared.

But we will still be fair and wise.
The coalition is  now all doom
Note how I smile with all my  lies,
Two elections, things will boom.


Predicted mining tax to yield 2 billion brought in just 200 million
In 12 months, a predicted 1 billion surplus  turned int a 19 billion deficit.
Next year 18 billion deficit.
The  year after only 10 billion down.
Then after the second election in this fairy tale a miniscule surplus.
Taxed and spent, tax and spend some more

The Lucky Country - Yeah right.

Preying on the stupid

I received a letter from Contact Energy today, our electricity provider.  It contained this gem:

You are currently on a low user plan.  The other option to consider is our standard user plan.  Based on how much electricity you've been billed for in the past year, you will most likely be better off staying on your current plan.

If you expect your electricity use to remain the same, you may be better off switching to our standard user plan.  This plan offers a highly daily charge and lower variable charge....

Righto.  You're most likely better off staying with what you have, and may be better off changing?

Thank goodness taxpayers don't pay this lady's wages. 

Arron Gilmore stood up, Shearer slipped without a mango skin in sight.

With the distraction of the Gilmore saga that has occupied the "churnalist" NZ media flopping about in their paddling pool for the last ten days, many real news stories have remained  hidden from citizen nz.

I know that is hardly earth shattering  as the vacuous unquestioning airheads who are employed to report the news do not even have a rudimentary grasp on the meaning of the word "News".
So much of their source is handouts from the  PR freeks of pollies,  businesses and managers of sports people.
Investigative effort is no longer a part,  research is either nonexistent or a quick scan of wikipedia,  verification is an obsolete word, and ignorance, ratings and budgets dominate the activity of news rooms.

Todays Questions for oral answer was in a word pathetic as a curtain raiser for the tragics awaiting the closing act of the short political life  of Arron Gilmore.
The man at the center front of what passes for news, put in a very strong effort that if he is sincere in, will be a good foundation for whatever rehabilitation he can find. The words of forgiveness, and expressions of loyalty to his party and leader along with the acceptance that he is the author of most of his fall from grace are a strong base for a rebuild. His words of scorn to the media hacks were a small salve for his fragile  feelings.

One jarring note amongst the day of political tragedy, was the performance of the leader of Her majesty's loyal opposition.  At a time when events had a fellow member making his traumatic exit  with the drama, sadness and accompanying tragedy,  the wool gatherer in a moment that was devoid of empathy, understanding, or feelings for a man on his knees, talked with undisguised glee on his face, about popcorn and coke.
Where there might have been an inkling of gravitas, humility, or dare I suggest an aura of the statesman,  the sad little mangoskin tosser could only gloat over the ending of a political career, an ending that he had absolutely no part in bringing about. 
He must have been more than a little dismayed at how the exit unfolded.
His facetious effort spoke volumes about the man who is presented to the sheeple as the great saviour.

It portrayed the total unsuitability of that nonentity as a potential Prime Minister.

The wrong solution to overseas ownership

I heard a story on the radio news driving into work this morning where a mortgage broker is suggesting limiting home ownership to NZ residents to limit skyrocketing prices in Auckland.  She said overseas bidders at auctions are outbidding us, and pushing up prices.

Dear Client

You can still bid at the auction and become the beneficial owner of the property, if not the legal owner.  My advice to you is to enter into a acknowledgement of trust with your friend/family member who is a NZ resident that says they hold the property on trust for you, and a direction to transfer to beneficiary is also signed, but held in escrow.  This direction can be actioned at any time, should the need arise.  Your interest as beneficial owner can be protected through a caveat on the title.  That way, you don't become the legal owner, and the NZ resident rule does not apply.  

That is one solution.  Another is to quit worrying about wealthy overseas bidders and start focusing on how we can match them, by becoming wealthier ourselves.  Whatever rule you put in place will be got around. 

That is absolutely certain.

Comment moderation as a panic button

Just for the record, and for anyone who might contemplate commenting there, the reason Martyn Bradbury has comment moderation enabled on The Daily Blog is so he can delete the embarrassing ones before anyone sees them (this will come as a great shock to those familiar with his previous work, I'm sure).  Nice example on this thread, in which I apparently retire in shame after receiving a stern rebuke.  It's not the only one. The blog should make a nice echo chamber for him soon enough.

A link to the post in the example, so that this shows up in the Daily Blog's pingbacks.

SUCCESS BREEDS SUCCESS,

Ignorance otoh breeds further ignorance.

Flushed with the results of his act of sabotage on the NZ economy, in cahoots with the wool gatherer, The XXXX wetback canetoad is now  promising to stop the "free" conference center for Auckland that will be largely paid for by overseas gamblers, WHEN HE IS ELECTED NEXT YEAR!!!

How will he find the money for this latest brainfart  (it will be expensive and just as difficult to implement)? why he will just print it stupid.

Opposition to what more and more appeals as a great deal, comes from his equally economically stunted m8 in another inane suggestion that it will only increase problem gambling.

Sheesh where do they get such monumentally stupid thinking from, oh thats right from discussions in the ever shallower puddle that accommodates NZ Labour.

How about Lotto and Big Wednesday, toss in the TAB and scratchies plus the largely immeasurable offshore based online gambling, you incomplete (read no brain) numpty.

The heavily scrutinised, filmed and audited activity in a casino gives far far more opportunity for control, identification and treatment of problem gamblers.

All the other opportunities listed above cause so much misdirected spending among those who can least afford to participate, who almost certainly never go near a casino.

This stupid attack on the antichrist will be supported to the hilt by the great unwashed, if only because the ignorant complicit media shouted their version of the facts to the heavens.

I warrant the burghers of Dunedin now wish the Forsyth Barr White Elephant had been so financed.

Ah well back to work I guess, that is where my humble 'success' was formed and nurtured.

IT WAS REALY JUST ANOTHER DRY.

However the effects were very marked and will seriously impact on production for up to two years, maybe longer.

However a couple of factors made it possibly a worst in living memory event.

Firstly it was  the most widespread dry, geographically, in my recollection.

Secondly it occurred at a time where much of the primary production is now on a mono practice system.

Kind of "perfect storm" scenario.

Before Irrigation altered farming practice, dairy concentrated on areas of high rainfall for summer pasture production.
Cropping similarly on heavy fertile soils.
Sheep on drier areas.
Mixed farming on areas separating these defined zones.
Yes that is a generalisation but fact based

Accompanying the very high costs of irrigation development and running/maintenance, much of current farming is now single facet production.

Dairy farms that 50 years ago might have a small piggery, a few sheep and or beef cattle that could be dropped out in an adverse season.
Cropping farms had a flock of breeding sheep that spread risk in the face of price or climate adversity.
Sheep farming had a stocking conservatism built in to the production target.

Today many Dairy farms are 100% turning grass into milk. Replacement stock leave at 4 days old to be raised by a rearer then onto a grazier and only return to the factory after lactation commences with the first calf. Many dairy units destock at drying off in Autumn and do not return stock till the cow calves in late winter/spring.  Supplements are produced off farm and it is only when the grass slows or stops as happened this year that the 'D' word enters the equation.

Fixed costs of irrigation result in such concentrated activity and most production is geared to very few options that are difficult to vary in the face of changing circumstance.

The 2012/13 dry was the most widespread event I recall, denying easy transfer of stock to another area. Purchase of supplements and the mono approach left very little room for manoeuvre for nearly all operations.

I am not attacking where farming has arrived at today but after a season where the dry has caused deeper and more marked outcomes, thought must be given to more protection and forward planning.

I farmed some horrendous drys in the early seventies but survived, profitably with large volumes of buried silage, diversion of cash crop grain to stock maintenance and through a spread risk profile from flexibility.

Today many Canterbury cropping farms do not even have boundary fences let alone internal barriers.

On the other hand what a marvelous summer, just like the olden days.

The facts can be so ordinary.

 However they can be meaningful when revealed.


When the Gilmore saga launched just over  a week ago, my gut feeling was that Andrew Riches actions had a distinct ring of 'reasonable' about them.

Today those reactions were basically proved correct to me,  in an innocent and spontaneous conservation with somebody close to the Riches family, a relationship stretching back over 50 years and 3 generations.

Andrew Riches is one very decent bastard who, confronted by Gilmores's appalling behavior did what any decent bastard would do.

Apologise to the wait person, just doing his job in the face of a total fuckwit's arrogance and inappropriate actions, apologise in as much as he, Riches, was part of the group who were tainted by Gilmore's behavior.

Faced with Gilmore's attempt to shift responsibility away from himself, Riches made attempts to clarify only to have the arrogant prick, Gilmore,   dig a deeper hole.

My info is as follows.

Andrew Riches grandfather is blue collar, ex pow, WW2, and a man of honour.

Andrew's dad Malcolm died suddenly when Andrew  was 5 years old from a sudden death probably heart related in his early 40s. The boy made the emergency call while his mum attempted to resuscitate Malcolm.

Andrew was awarded a scholarship to Christs College, triggered by the untimely death of his Dad and he has made every attempt to make that benefit worth something.

Andrew has had connections to National through young Nats, explaining his attendance at Hanmer Springs

Malcolm Riches gave many of his productive years in the service of St John Ambulance, a significant amount of which was unrewarded materially.

Andrew Riches, who in the aftermath of the whole sordid affair is potentially more damaged by Gilmore's subsequent actions than anyone should reasonably bear.

 Some ignorant commenters here and elsewhere have cast aspersions on Andrew Riches actions and motives that have such a gulf with reality as to be unconscionable.

That it took Gilmore over a week to make any meaningful  restitution, welcome as it is, does very little to address the damage he has inflicted on a decent good bastard.

For that, Andrew can I offer my sincere sympathy and grateful thanks for standing up for what I  and most other decent bastards regard as right.
Your actions then and subsequently have a reassuring quality of the good, the  honourable and the correct that I hope would mirror mine.
My gut feelings were apparently pretty accurate

Disclaimer, I have never met Andrew Riches, his immediate or extended Family but there is much to be admired in that group of New Zealand citizens.
I am and have never had, any material connection to the NZ National Party.

Number of the day

68,600,000.

That's the amount of money the Greens, Labour and NZ First have to find with each 10c rise of the MRP share price (to buy them back).  That's on top of the $1.72 Billion they originally cost, and which will also have to be found by that government.

I might keep a running tally.  The current price is $2.63.  There are 686,000,000 shares listed in the minority 49%  So far, they have to find $1,804,180,000 (One Billion Eight Hundred and Four Million One Hundred  and Eighty Thousand dollars).

Good luck with that, idiots.

The buyback, and the renationalisation will never happen.

UPDATE: I have remembered that Winston First will only pay the price we paid on listing - $2.50.  So for each 10c rise, that's actually $68,600,000 lost out of investors pockets.  That's even worse than the government borrowing or stealing from Kiwisaver funds to pay for it!! 

MMP IS TOO OFTEN FOUND WANTING.

My philosophical opposition to the current proportional electoral system in use in NZ, is no secret.

The Gilmore saga is just another exposure of the total lack of accountability MMP delivers when a person delivered a seat with all the perks and privileges accompanying,  can fail so spectacularly yet face no threat to that exalted status.

Gilmore has become a total arse as a "list" MP is disastrous enough.

A system where neither the party or its parliamentary wing can sanction a member bringing such incompetence, unsuitability,  disloyalty and electoral baggage on board  is bad enough but that a polished turd can adorn the caucus room is beyond the pale.
Here is a man (advisedly)  who has lost the confidence of his leader, due not to his original alcohol fueled response to a person who under current licencing law may suffer sanction and or have  employment  abruptly ended, for failing to cease serving further alcohol to an impaired patron,  but for Gilmore's inability to address his appalling behavior and suitably make amends  and all  accompanied with a rather convoluted view of basic honesty, decency, morality and how most consider an MP should behave.

Maybe the only solution is to have anyone seeking candidature for  an electorate tilt and or a List place must also be required to hand to the party officials an undated but duly signed letter of resignation and a  witnessed acceptance letter authorising  the caucus /leaders discretion to action it.

It was a widely rumoured fact that before the late Keith Holyoake would consider appointing anyone to cabinet they had to comply with a similar pact.

When one in such a senior position as Homepaddock, aka Ele Ludemann, South Island regional Chair, and one of the selection panel who raised this twerp to his place in the party in 2008,  is so moved to pen her open letter to the plonker to "just go", it seems such a need exists when the said plonker refuses to honour his loyalty to the party with two bent fingers.

Clearly there will be precious little interest in anyone else moving to bring such deadweights to book so maybe the parties need to bring their own solution to bear.

The Public Health System

 Adolf has been through the mill.  I have endured more tests in the last two months than the Australian cricket eleven.

Torn shoulder tendon:

Cotizone jab
Ultrasound scan
Physio

Suspected heart attack

ECG
Echocardiagramme
CT scan
Angiogramme - all clear

Hearing

Two hearing tests and hearing aids

Sight

Optometrist test and new reading glasses

All in all, Adolf has been called upon to pay the princely sum of $800 for all of the above and there was no delay or waiting period for any of the procedures.

All in all, I reckon the full cost of this package must have been close to $40,000.

So Adolf asks, WHY THE HELL WOULD YOU PAY FOR HEALTH INSURANCE?

This experience kinda vindicates my advice to clients, during the last years of my insurance practice, to drop health insurance and focus on other more important calamities such as death and disability.

Wednesday fun

Those on the left who couldn't organise a piss up in a brewery; couldn't find a shoe in a shoe store blah blah blah are still trying to get the extra 16,500 votes to get them over the line.

Let's help them out.

Download the form here.  Put as many names and addresses on as you can, and send it back to Roy Reid, whose address appears at the foot of the page.

Names such as Mary Magdalene, Maxwell Smart, Clark Kent, Phil Clinton, Norman Russell, Daniel Boon et al.  And addresses such as 16 Oxford Terrace, Devonport, will go a long way to helping them (us).  For the unitiated, that address is a block of public conveniences.

Yippee!

Headline needs work

Front page of the Dominion Post this morning:

Capital a dying city says prime minister

That headline needs changing - it should really say something like "No idea how to do my job says prime minister."

I much preferred the version of this article that greeted us at 7am, before the PM started trying to weasel his way out of having not only said that Wellington is dying, but also that he has no idea what might be done about it.

Zen Tiger's already commented on the visionary CEO-style leadership qualities displayed by the PM in this story.  I'm unsurprised by it myself - it's always been obvious that Key's interest in being PM has focused on simply being PM, rather than actually achieving anything beyond photo opportunities with celebs and having an entourage.  It was clear from the policy objectives he expressed back in 2008, in which the focus was to be on closing the pay gap with Australia and thereby encouraging expats to return to NZ - this to be achieved by, er, helping employers drive down pay and conditions in NZ.  It was a goal scarcely less laughable then than it is now, so expectations of the man weren't exactly high.  He's certainly lived down to them.

While She Still Breathes - Just

Here is Adolf's tribute to Julia Gillard upon the event of her premature death or electoral defeat, whichever comes first.

LUDDITE SOMETIMES IS INADEQUATE.

Caught a little of The Nation on Sat morning where Smalley had  Far North Mayor Wayne Brown and Wanganui Mayor Annette Main, in to discus ways to grow their local economies. This in the light of a preceding interview with Mr Joyce.

Talk was about further processing of timber, tourism and mineral extraction.

Then Smalley brought in "an economic spokesman" from the union movement (was it Conway?) who jumped in with a plea to bring back manufacturing as a solution.

Where does that Guy live?

Does he ever look to see where goods he buys are Made?  Does he have even the smallest idea why virtually all will be made in China, maybe Viet Nam, Sri Lanka or Bangladesh?

That is reality 2013, muppet!  Save your use of rubbish unsustainable claptrap for a tame meeting of the thick.  Please don't insult the thinking who might watch what passes for current affairs, in the vain hope of searching for edification.

Had he said something about design, innovation, research and development, practical solutions then yes we can and do accomplish those things but to get the resulting creation made, assembled and shipped it will not be in NZ.  MANUFACTURING is not an option.  We are too small as a market, too far from world markets and our cost structures prohibit such dreamworld solutions.

If manufacturing is the answer, it was a monumentally stupid question along with the answer.

"Do you know who I am" not the worst

From Granny:

The Ovendens rented the property from Dickinson but in November, Gilmore wrote telling them he appreciated they were "good tenants" but they had to be out by January 7 because the trust wanted the property for the summer.

Can't count - 90 days past November, even 1 November, is not 7 January.

An email from Dickinson's lawyer to Ovenden's, Anthony Whitcombe, said Gilmore did not represent the trust, his communication could be ignored and the Ovendens could stay.

Acts without authority and as a renegade.

But on March 28, Gilmore wrote giving the Ovendens 90 days' notice.

Summer has ended, yet still can't count.

He said he would inspect the property in early April. He also instructed them not to correspond any further with Dickinson who, he said, had resigned as a trustee and beneficiary of his trust and had no remaining responsibility for the property.
However, property records show she still owns a share of the house.

Doesn't know the law and contradicts Dickinson's lawyer's account of things.

In an email dated April 2, Gilmore told Whitcombe he was considering ensuring "all property owners in the Lake Ohau village are provided a full reference of the type of tenant that Craig is in lying and not following tenancy agreements".

Stupid, ungrammatical emails.

On April 5, he wrote to Whitcombe again, saying the Ovendens had agreed to move out and he had a recording of the discussion.

Breaks the law and tells the opposing lawyer about it in an email.

He then told him: "Please refrain from continuing to making [sic] yourself look foolish."

More stupid ungrammatical emails with poor spelling.

These are six reasons why Gilmore must go.

No MP, let alone a National MP, should be this dumb.

GRENADE OR DAMP SQUIB?

The major flip flop announced by Mr Shearer and written by his new  XXXX wet back commy mate has impacted in the partial float of Mighty River Power.

To those who were sufficiently economically literate and had chosen to invest or decline, there appears to have been minor alteration in response.

Sadly though the attempt to involve new entrants from the ranks of those with small savings but a policy of avoiding investing in shares for any of many very real impediments,  it appears to have frightened the horses.
Here was a tremendous opportunity for "savers" with a nestegg to put $1000 into a utility without need of a sharebroker or finangle 'advisor' in an almost watertight investment opportunity, along with a promise of bonus shares, dividends, an appreciation of risk and reward and a window through which to view how shares fluctuate.


Hell no said the socialists and their moronic supporters  who saw only an opportunity to lob a couple of explosives into the small chance of  an increase in financial understanding, leaving many questioning "why".

Thinking people to a one saw the mindbogglingly stupid play for exactly what it was, sabotage! and yet another vote buying bribe

For me their move has made the investment cheaper per share.

For NZ Inc they have denied all citizens maybe 1/2 a billion dollars  just dissolved in the risk profile
.
One major legacy partial privatisation delivers,  that has been glossed over or completely ignored, is that with 49% in shareholders hands, any repeat of a government harvesting dividends to replace govt revenue has a large stumbling block of transparency in its path.
Moving the dollars gained to schools etc added to that sanction. Remember the 72% power cost increase, Clark's Government "harvested".

For patriots who have seen many millions of savings disappear into the ether, this clusterf**k brings back a genuine distrust of money markets  and puzzling behavior of fraudsters, to the mind of the timid.
There is an abyss of knowledge in matters financial among many of the voting public and I for one wonder if an added incentive for the crass economic ploy was in part to maintain that ignorance.

All the dreamtime talk of "saving a household a basic Lotto ticket per week", dressed up in caring fancy wrapping without any divulging as to where the transferred costs would fall or any mention of the accompanying lunatic ETS costs, will have gone completely over the heads of those who see "The Finance Market" as a jungle where people get screwed.
Many of us know the big player in such overweening usury, it is that caring manipulative institution "Big Government" that does much of the screwing and there aint nothing pleasant about it.

RESEARCH YES, ONYA TIZZA.

Peter Fitz Simons is an ex Wallaby who these days writes a regular column for the Sydney Morning Herald.

Many will have seen a different effort from Peter Fitz around ANZAC Day when he did a doco on "The White Mouse" aka  Nancy Wake a renowned member of the french resistance,  the Marquis, a subject dear to his heart as in her declining years he wrote a biography on that truly remarkable woman.

One of his latest efforts connects with a rising awareness of brain injury from successive concussions suffered by people in high impact sports .
It follows the comparatively early death of an ex First grade Manly rugby player Barry 'Tizza' Taylor from 20 years ago who apparently had little regard for any possible damage he maybe accumulating in a career of total commitment to contact rugby from the side of the scrum, and who severe dementia brought down at the age of 52.

Tizza's last years were punctuated by increasing short term memory loss and mood swings including short temper and verbal violence.

The question of such debilitating outcomes is increasingly being studied in American Football, League, NHL, Rugby and other high impact sports. The ARL have just outlawed the "shoulder Charge" and Rugby officials have instituted a test for onfield concussions immediately after an incident.
A recent item on local TV highlights the problems being endured by Auckland and AB halfback, Steve Devine.

Many Rugby followers have heard anecdotal evidence of players who remember nothing of a game after being KOd and 'playing on'.

Well Fitzy, after some gentle persuasion, got Tizza's widow to permit the surgical removal of the dead man's brain and having it sent to Boston University who are doing major research on such injuries and the sad legacy they leave in certain players.

When TV in search of ratings, play features of such impacts in "smash em bro"," the weeks greatest hits", and any player wanting to get to the top must master the debilitating offensive tackle as a weapon, avoidance, mitigation, protection and treatment needs to get with it and fast.

The closing sentence from Peter Fitz summs up well
" you made an impact on Rugby mate perhaps we can find out what impact rugby had on you".

Electoral Suicide

This week saw two cases of political self immolation.  One on the right and, just for balance, another on the left.

First, let me present the National Party jerk, Aaron Gimore, a self styled 'important person' who should be known to every wine waiter in the land.

Adolf can just imagine his conversation with the PM:-

'Good morning Aaron.  Tell me, what's it like to be an important person?  ................................'

He will be rewarded with list place number 122 in a 121 seat parliament.

Then, for good measure, I give you Tweedle Dumb and Tweedle Twee who, between them, handed John Key the next election by way of their electricity nationalization policy..

David Farrar blogged on the latest Roy Morgan poll but he made the rare and uncharacteristic error of including Winston in his equation even though NZF's party vote was only 4.5%.  Here is the corrected result.  National and Dunne could govern alone by appointing Peter Sharples as Speaker - which would clear up a bit of a mess in the Maori Party at the same time.

Party name	Party Votes won	Party seat entitlement	No. of electorate seats won	No. of list MPs	Total MPs		% of MPs
Green Party	11.00%	14	0	14	14		11.48%
Labour Party	31.50%	41	20	21	41		33.61%
Mana	1.00%	1	1	0	1		0.82%
Māori Party	1.50%	2	4	0	4	*	3.28%
National Party	46.50%	61	30	31	61		50.00%
United Future	0.50%	1	1	0	1		0.82%
Totals	92.00%	120	56	66	122		100.00%