General Debate 4 February 2018

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Luke Piewalker

Sweepstake on when the next general election is.
My money is for late 2018 after NZ has had to endure Prime Minister Mr 3% running the show
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February 4, 2018 8:04am
- KiWombat
  
  I think you’re pretty close to the mark – by that time the government will have imploded – the signs are there
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:08am
  - KiWombat
    
    But my money would be on early 2019.
    
    WeeWinnie would want to serve 12 months as DPM to get his Parliamentary pension based on that salary. More so because for part of that time he will be acting PM !
    
    If he hangs on for an election and they lose, it will cost him hundreds of thousands in pension entitlements, so just join the dots !
    
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    February 4, 2018 8:44am
    - Nutta
      
      Any election early in a calendar year would be unlikely?
      
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      February 4, 2018 1:07pm
  - Piniwi
    
    True KiWombat since by then the Greens will surely have a dot and dash leadership who have both become uncomfortable with being fisted. Calling a vote of no confidence could be the result of having to endure the rough end of the pineapple too long.
    
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    February 4, 2018 4:50pm
- Ross12
  
  Much as I might want to agree with your prediction LP , I think they will go 3 years. It might be messy but there too many in there and behind the scenes who will do anything to stay, no matter how many dead rats they have to swallow.
  
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  February 4, 2018 9:06am
  - DifferentPerspective
    
    Yup sadly. In power till at least 2023.
    
    The lying whoring MSM still have that much influence.
    
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    February 4, 2018 9:30am
    - Liberty
      
      So Voting for Winston wasn’t such a bright idea?
      
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      February 4, 2018 12:51pm
      - DifferentPerspective
        
        I got what I voted for – ~~National~~ Labour Lite out of power and put in the naughty seat to mend their ways.
        
        Looks like they’re going to have a lot of time there to reflect on how their cuckservatism cost them.
        
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        February 4, 2018 3:05pm
      - Liberty
        
        “mend their ways.”
        Sadly it only took a few let the genie out of the bottle.
        Resulting in Col increased taxes and with the
        Electoral Integrity Amendment Bill. New Zealand will soon been ruled by a doddery old fascist. Muldoon /Clark were control freaks but little saints compared to what is going to hit NZ over the next few months.
        
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        February 4, 2018 4:16pm
      - Humble Capitalist
        
        Anybody that believes the New Zealand Unions Party will be a good thing for this country’s future is ‘brains lite’.
        
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        February 4, 2018 6:31pm
      - GazzaW
        
        HC, it’s happening already. Two of our kids returned to NZ in 2010 and 2013 to further their careers. They had been refugees of the Clark era but they are now heading offshore to Singapore and Melbourne as they see the upcoming destruction of our free market economy. Both are centrist politically but have seen enough in the first 100 days to be very much aware that our country is being administered by fools at the behest of the unions. I fear that we are about to see the exodus yet again of our young talent and taxpayer base.
        
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        February 4, 2018 7:53pm
  - Gravelroad
    
    Well unless there is someone willing and able to call Winston Peters to account for his lies, personal vendettas and already broken election promises, I would agree with you Ross 12.
    It is clear that Jacinda is just a puppet for behind the scenes manipulation.
    Peters is dangerous because he is on a self serving crusade at the expense of NZ as a whole.
    
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    February 4, 2018 9:32am
    - Piniwi
      
      Should that be “NZ as his whore” Gravelroad? He has already placed his bet that NZ is going down economically. At least we took it to mean economically.
      
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      February 4, 2018 4:56pm
    - GoVege
      
      Winnie was talking a lot about “responsibility ” and suchlike during the election.
      Let’s hope he starts demonstrating it instead of wasting time on vendettas.
      
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      February 4, 2018 7:12pm
  - hubbers
    
    Completely agree. Power is addictive, they will cling to it as long as they can. Look at the dead rats the Greens have choked down already for a tiny bit of power, terminating a ocean sanctuary, cancelling tax cuts for the poor and having supportive a bill that would literally have stopped their own party from getting started.
    
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    February 4, 2018 9:35am
  - Chris R
    
    I agree (reluctantly.) Jacinda is too adept at playing for the mindless vote ie those who think it is cute and somehow wonderful to have a pregnant PM. This lot have already exhibited their gross naivety as a government but their votes will be derived from the mindless voters who rely on Labour’s taxpayer largesse to sustain their tiny lives. This lot won’t achieve very much at all it is the damage they’ll do along the way which is the threat to us all. If the losers breach during the next three years it won’t be Labour which causes it, nor do I expect Winston to be the culprit, it’ll be the schoolgirl party ie the Greens who decide their lunacies aren’t being taken far enough. National needs a coalition partner and my idea would be for them to engender a new Greens Party which is divorced from Marxism and can hold a debate based on rational thinking rather than emotive claptrap about carbon usage, climate change etc… Perhaps ACT could adopt a sensible green mantle? I don’t know!
    
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    February 4, 2018 9:41am
    - KiWombat
      
      We are going to have a PM who only a minute number of people voted for.
      
      Not only did he lose his electorate seat for the third time, but his party is in real peril of demise on current numbers.
      
      There’s something very wrong is we end up with a Mr 3% Prime Minister !
      
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      February 4, 2018 11:01am
      - DifferentPerspective
        
        For the 3rd time MMP gave us this sort of nonsense
        
        “fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me”
        
        unfortunately there is no “in the inconceivable situation that I am so utterly completely retarded as to allow you to fool me thrice” guidance on who is to blame!
        
        NZ voted to keep the awful electoral system that keeps on putting a minor party in the box seat. The lie of proportional representation!
        
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        February 4, 2018 3:10pm
    - Piniwi
      
      Wow ChrisR glad you got all that out. IMO the recent attempted hit job on Nationals leadership is a mere smoke screen to cover all the infighting in the COL. There are some squabbles festering between parties as well as some serious internal problems in each of the COL parties. This will only make it to the Media party when it all hits the fan. At which time they will claim they knew all about but it failed to be classed as news.
      
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      February 4, 2018 5:08pm
- Humble Capitalist
  
  My money is September 2025 after new electoral reform law is passed
  
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  February 4, 2018 9:22am
- Colville
  
  The COL will go the distance.
  Winston has no power. He can threaten and bluster but Cindy can just tell him to shove it.
  What is he gonna do? threaten to force an election where NZF will be put to the sword never to return?
  
  I want Cindy to be known as a one term PM that screwed up NZ badly, all talk and no trousers, the great thing is there has been near zero rejuvenation in the Labour ranks to the “talent” pool is still puddle deep.
  
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  February 4, 2018 9:55am
- eandlbufe
  
  Mr 3% will probably be Mr 0.3% by then.
  
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  February 4, 2018 11:36am
  - KiWombat
    
    His liver will have given out before 2025
    
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    February 4, 2018 12:23pm
- eandlbufe
  
  He wont be Mr 3% by then, probably a Mr 0.3%.
  
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  February 4, 2018 12:15pm
- suzieq
  
  I’d love to think you’re right …. But Ms Ardern is very determined to make it work. We’ll see, I guess.
  
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  February 4, 2018 1:13pm
  - Piniwi
    
    But But suzieq one has to actually do some work to make “it” work. Even a dead light bulb gets a reprieve when each new day dawns.
    The secret agreement document should be released to shed some light on the dark days ahead.
    
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    February 4, 2018 5:14pm
- hullkiwi
  
  I don’t know about your date, but despite what the latest poll results & the MSN tell us, Princess Fairy Dust & the Pest for all Sesons/Reasons are losing support amongst their own voter bases. I’m led to this by two things:
  1. My wife who works in retail with women who are either Labour or N. These women are very unhappy as a representative group and feel betrayed by both Tax Cindy & Peters;
  2. We were with a group of friends for a bbq, all had voted NZF, all are upset with Peters. Their lack of support for Peters were:
  – selecting Labour & the Greens;
  – reversing Nationals tax cuts in favour of fighting poverty with hand outs.
  
  It seems women who are in the work force & have had families are none too happy with Princess’ approach to her pregnancy. This is because:
  1. Women who are pregnant can’t get new jobs & then tell the boss they need to go on maternity leave after being employed. So, in short she is seen as getting favour other women don’t get &she is seen as deceitful by working women with children;
  2. Handing over to Peters is not popular with core Labour voters, seems that they have a problem that he has no real mandate. To them, he appears to be a tail wagging a dog;
  3. Working Labour people do not see Princess having anything in common it them, they too are annoyed that she is banging on about fighting poverty, which to them seems just as nebulous as it is to everyone else (except do good et poverty cmpaigners).
  
  So, there are opportunities for National to open up, & score political mileage.
  
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  February 4, 2018 3:52pm
  - GoVege
    
    The only “poverty” here is caused by the unaffordability of buying a home.
    Most beneficiaries live in state supplied houses anyway, so they aren’t too poor.
    (Though wages should be higher. )
    The only way out of poverty is through education, but nobody in government ever mentions that.
    
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    February 4, 2018 4:23pm
    - hullkiwi
      
      True, but the low wage economy is largely due to decades of institutionalised low productivity. Much of this encouraged by the welfare system and regimes like WFF which encourage people to earn $x and no more else they lose there money for nothing benefit.
      
      You are right about education, the system set up in NZ mirrored the UK on the basis that those who established our systems were of a British background; and a European structured education system provided Kiwis with an education that was internationally competitive.
      
      Not anymore, now we have a system that inspires people to have a lack of aspiration, leading to poverty of the mind, and resulting in people having second rate jobs with second rate incomes.
      
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      February 4, 2018 5:14pm
      - GoVege
        
        I don’t know if it’s the system, hullkiwi.
        A lot of it is the parenting.
        The system needs to give more support to kids whose parents don’t care, or even actively discourage their childrens’ education.
        I know a Samoan boy who spent every spare moment free from housework, studying.
        (Many Polynesian parents DO encourage their kids, but some see them as cash cows working to pay for their housie, bingo, cars and holidays back home.)
        This kid was ordered to quit school and get a job to hand over his pay to his mother.
        His cousins told me he cried when she told him to leave school.
        Many people have had this experience, myself included, and society needs to drop the pretence that all parents have their kids’ best interests at heart.
        Many do NOT.
        
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        February 4, 2018 6:53pm
    - KiWombat
      
      Open the fridge in the state supplied home to check just how impoverished they really are – Oh, you might need to push aside the slabs of beer first !
      
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      February 4, 2018 10:51pm
      - GoVege
        
        Kiwombat: it’s not easy to live on a benny, even if you have no bad habits to fund.
        It gets even harder when kids get older, which is why so many get turfed out in their mid teens.
        Of course some parents let nature take its course and let their daughters get pregnant, which brings in the more generous DPB into the household.
        Pity, as encouraging your kids’ education would be a better plan long-term.
        
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        February 5, 2018 12:51am
starboard

Dow Jones down 666 points …ouch, thats gona hurt.
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February 4, 2018 8:08am
- kowtow
  
  That’s a devil of a dip.
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:13am
  - Fisiani
    
    The 2.5% drop in the Dow was on a Friday. It will be interesting to watch the NZX on Monday as we are the first exchange to open after the weekend. I predict we will have lots of sales in the opening hours and every other bourse will be watching us. If there are few buyers then prices will plummet. A lot of sales are computer generated and this could be very messy by days end in the USA. What goes up…..
    
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    February 4, 2018 12:29pm
- flipper
  
  Only if you bought at 26000+.
  Rising interest rates seem the problem. But here in Peters-Ardern-Poofie-Dyke land it is the system that has failed.
  Well, we shall see !
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:16am
- Manolo
  
  Hold on tight, mate.
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:34am
- pdm
  
  Hardly a concern unless there is a recession in the near future. America seems to be on track for good growth and markets will grow accordingly.
  
  New Zealand is so small that the negative effects of `The Hydra’ should not affect prudent investors.
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:54am
  - Rich Prick
    
    The trouble is, we seem to have one every 10 years. I suspect the next one will be self inflicted rather than caused by the ripple effect as ours usually are.
    
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    February 4, 2018 9:39am
    - KevOB
      
      Standby and enjoy the fireworks. Savers are not being rewarded contrary to human nature and basic economics. Interest rates must rise–they have been used to enrich the already wealthy.
      
      The longer the delay in opening the flood gates the greater the adjustments required. NZ will not be isolated as the massive credit created has been fed into our assets too.
      
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      February 4, 2018 12:30pm
Paulus

Wonderful to hear today the rapturous welcome Princess Cindy and her baby have received from Northern Maori, and how they have taken her to their hearts with suggested names.
I wonder how long it will take when they expect her rhetoric to be turned into dollars.
Must be before she leaves it all to Peters.
Does she realise that she is in the process of being screwed again, but she obviously likes it.
How much will it cost the Country once she has to give up Water Rights and even the Air we breath because of her nieveity and desire to be loved by everybody – at the moment Northern Maori who have not even agreed to start a treaty settlement – they can see more and more money and concessions.
Maori have never given anything except for some large sort of koha Cindy – stop being a fool – impossible.
Assume the wedding on Tuesday will fulfill the visit.
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February 4, 2018 8:16am
- Southern Raider
  
  I see another big claim from the Princess
  
  “I will personally visit every Iwi, Hapu and Marae in Northland.”
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:53am
  - RalphT
    
    Excellent, that should keep her out of our hair for many a month.
    
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    February 4, 2018 9:21am
    - Southern Raider
      
      I think once again the mouth moved quicker than the brain. There would be over a hundred Marae in Northland alone
      
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      February 4, 2018 9:48am
      - waikatogirl
        
        Kelvin the Klutz is in his element on marae visiting.
        
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        February 4, 2018 10:01am
  - Digmen1
    
    Wow, that’s such a great goal!
    
    Most of us mere mortals have only been able to visit personally a couple of Mare.
    
    How can you visit a Hapu.
    Is it a place?
    
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    February 4, 2018 10:58am
  - Piniwi
    
    Really SR. but it is “tribe” and “Pa” as known by the majority.
    
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    February 4, 2018 5:21pm
- VicParking
  
  A 100 days achievement missed off the list. The new don’t touch the Bump protocol. Let’s hope Stephen Joyce does not become PM.
  
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  February 4, 2018 9:24am
- KKKKatee
  
  I surmised in yesterday’s blog that the PM would wear a greenstone token around her neck at Waitangi. And guess what? She bloody did!!!!Talk about ‘virtue signalling’.
  And she’s getting her tummy patted too, although to be fair she didn’t ask for that! P
  Oh my goodness, I just want to stick my fingers down my throat and have a bloody good chunder! Hey Arden, why don’t you just go home and leave the 3-ring circus to get on with it. I mean, just what is there to say by Day#3? We’re not hearing if you’ve bumped into Hone H yet? Please do enlighten. And as for all this rubbish about visiting every Iwi, Hapu and Marae in Northland. I thought by now you would’ve recognised the dangers of making promises you have no intention of keeping.
  
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  February 4, 2018 4:52pm
  - GoVege
    
    Kkkatee: so long as we have those antiquated Maori Seats, you will have to endure this nauseating spectacle.
    Jacinda can’t get too wound up, in her delicate condition, but let’s hope Shane, Kelvin, and even Winston start telling Maori to do something about their neglect of their precious tamariki and mokopuna instead of just clamouring for handouts.
    
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    February 4, 2018 7:08pm
- GoVege
  
  It’s just as well she IS pregnat before she goes visiting maraes.
  Maori culture demands that every woman, no matter how demanding her job, must produce children or she is not “a real woman”.
  
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  February 4, 2018 7:02pm
KevOB

Great initial performance by new “government”.
Tourists and Kiwis stranded on blocked road for days and no relief supplies helicoptered in.
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February 4, 2018 8:19am
- Luke Piewalker
  
  Yes but Cindy and Gaylord will be on the cover of Womens Weekly. Thats all that matters to Kiwis surely
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:22am
  - VicParking
    
    Sums up her achievements “womens weakly”
    
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    February 4, 2018 9:25am
- kowtow
  
  The media (tv1) beat that one up big time. Used a couple of hysterical foreign wopersons to slag the country off. Come here for the great outdoors and adventure , don’t listen to the weather report .
  
  #fuckoffbacktowhereyoucamefrom
  
  ps Getting tampons and other essential supplies to tourists has nothing to do with Cinders and Co.though I’m sure if they had asked she’d have obliged.
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:26am
  - fernglas
    
    I heard a Northern Irish woman say, quite reasonably and fairly, in my view, that for a country which has experienced so many natural disasters recently, we are not well prepared at all. Anyone have any serious disagreement with that, whether it comes from the mouth of a woman with an Irish accent or not?
    
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    February 4, 2018 8:35am
    - waikatogirl
      
      Hindsight is a wonderful thing!
      
      There were weather reports from 5 days before that a cyclone was going to hit the West Coast. OK, so they could have closed roads in just in case of serious problems. Definitely should have quicker response afterwards to check on road users silly enough to be attempting to cross the Southern Alps passes in a cyclone! The airforce, or private helicopters in the South Island could have dropped in with a few supples until the road gangs were able to open the roads. Very slow response.
      The cyclone damage was significant with powerlines downed and large trees flattened like firewood. But who knew that would happen in predicted weather! ?
      
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      February 4, 2018 8:48am
      - Southern Raider
        
        Is there any airforce left in the South Island to do that?
        
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        February 4, 2018 8:54am
      - waikatogirl
        
        SR, I’ve heard the Airforce helicopters can reach the South Island from their base. // ?
        
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        February 4, 2018 9:00am
      - KiWombat
        
        As you say, most people would have known that a cyclone was about to hit the West Coast.
        
        To venture into that part of the country on the eve of such a weather event is just plain stupid – and there’s nothing you can do that counters stupid !
        
        All you can do is warn people of what is coming, and that did happen. Locals will need the roads, so no point in closing them.
        
        Interesting that locals didn’t complain, they just got on with life. Maybe we need to add another sign to tourist camper vans (as well as KEEP LEFT) advising tourists to LISTEN TO WEATHER FORECASTS ?
        
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        February 4, 2018 9:01am
      - Gravelroad
        
        Who would pay for the private helicopters in the South Island to drop in with a few supplies etc?
        Wouldn’t be the tourists, would it?
        Would have to be NZ taxpayers or local ratepayers.
        Then there are the health and safety requirements around the use of, in particular, privately owned machinery.
        In today’s world it’s not as easy as it sounds to just get a few helicopters to fly in and drop stuff.
        
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        February 4, 2018 9:05am
    - kowtow
      
      It’s a matter of opinion and circumstances.
      
      Being trapped for a day or two by a weather event is hardly major.
      
      Three people were tragically washed to their deaths yesterday. What “preparation” was there for that .
      
      If anyone thinks the tourists were in a bind on the west coast then let’s hope the Rotorua Caldera or Alpine Fault don’t go bang anytime soon .
      
      How can a country prepare for that , and no one can say they weren’t warned!
      
      ps I heard a woperson with an Oirish accent say the authorities did a great job.
      
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      February 4, 2018 8:56am
      - waikatogirl
        
        The tourists came to NZ for the wide open remoteness and quiet backwater charm of our country then complained there wasn’t instant help.
        
        Irony alert. ?
        
        Sad for the families of those who got washed away. But who is stupid enough to cross swollen rivers?
        
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        February 4, 2018 9:03am
      - Don the Kiwi
        
        Is that Oirish person the same as the ‘Eyerush’ one? 😉
        
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        February 4, 2018 11:41am
    - suzieq
      
      Canadian, I think.
      
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      February 4, 2018 1:17pm
  - KevOB
    
    Maybe tourist were a little casual, aren’t we all on holiday, but the local authorities should have been on standby if help was needed.
    
    It could be that this road has become more popular for tourists. That increases our responsibility to be watchful.
    
    Civil Defence or some other body may need a couple of helicopters available for quick response around NZ. That would have got food and water in. The demand was not great but timing was important.
    
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    February 4, 2018 12:36pm
    - waikatogirl
      
      It was a little difficult to get access into where the tourists were as 13 road gangs were required to shift all the slips, trees and debris off the roads, and powerlines needed sorting before any work could be carried out in some areas.
      
      Sometimes you just have to wait a while.
      
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      February 4, 2018 1:33pm
- GazzaW
  
  As the Minister for both Civil Defence and Tourism it’s another big fail for Faafoi.
  
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  February 4, 2018 10:43am
  - KiWombat
    
    He probably is so engrossed in Northland that he hasn’t hears diddly squat about what is going on in the mainland
    
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    February 4, 2018 11:06am
  - Manolo
    
    No surprise at all if you consider how this incompetent and fantasist became a Minister of the Crown. Utter incredible!
    
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    February 4, 2018 11:12am
  - KKKKatee
    
    Is he up North and too busy rubbing noses with every Tom, Dick and Harry to actually care?
    
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    February 4, 2018 5:00pm
billmurray

Labour, NZ First, the Greens all seem intent on destroying the economy of New Zealand.
Why?.
How?.
By bringing in more Muslim immigrants.
Legal or illegal!.
As is happening or as happened in Gt Britain, Europe.
Why again?.
Why?.
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February 4, 2018 8:19am
- Digmen1
  
  May be because as a good member of the UN we are not allowed to discriminate again anyone who applies to come here.
  
  But we should be able to.
  Many countries do not follow the UN’s rules.
  
  If we care we must try to stop muslims coming here.
  
  Dont employ them.
  Dont sell houses to them
  Dont rent houses to them.
  Make them feel uncomfortable
  
  I could go on.
  
  Lobby our MPs as much as we can.
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:41am
  - wiseowl
    
    Bill you can’t let National off the hook.
    All our politicians are mesmerised by the UN and the agreements they sign up to.
    None of them have the balls to say ‘NO’ .
    The UN should not be dictating what any country does and yet Agenda 2030 rolls on .
    It is another reason why Trump is so good.
    He will not cave in to the world control desired by the UN.
    But the sheeple carry on.
    
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    February 4, 2018 8:53am
    - Inandout
      
      There is truth there wiseone in that National slept through much of their tenure and signed up to anything that felt good. I doubt they will learn from this as their predecessors of late were just as bad. Finlayson (an iwi lawyer) and his sucking up to the treaty industry did us inestimable damage. Labour merely carry on the giveaway trend.
      
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      February 4, 2018 9:30am
      - Viking2
        
        Yep and now AirNZ under Key is going to bring the Obama clown here.
        
        Why??????
        
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        February 4, 2018 12:19pm
  - GoVege
    
    Not all Muslims are potential terrorists, Digmen.
    Quite a few are only nominally Muslims, having been born into it.
    (Just like a lot of atheists were baptised Christians in childhood.)
    It probably depends where they come from.
    But they do need to be thoroughly screened when they move to a Western nation.
    Allowing bigamists and wife-bashers in is against our culture and harmful to our nation.
    
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    February 4, 2018 7:22pm
- Harkman
  
  Nowadays, Marxists hate white people.
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:48am
  - VicParking
    
    When Marxism died in the 70”s they went hand hid by sourounding themselves with Feminists, Genderists, Veganists, Conservationists, Labour parties and immigrants. That way you can’t bomb them, literally or metaphorically as you are attacking “innocent” people. From Gaza to Greenpeace they spread their philosophy surrounded by the downtrodden, misquoted and not understood.
    
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    February 4, 2018 9:39am
- Albert_Ross
  
  What exactly has any of those parties said or done that supports your contention that they are intent on bringing more Muslims here, legal or illegal?
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:50am
  - Digmen1
    
    Well they are not intent on Not bringing them here.
    There are at least 50,000 muslims here now!
    That is 50,001 too many.
    They will cause trouble
    They will bludge
    They set up muslim societies
    Schools
    Then they will start asking for privileges and special rights.
    Then their sons and grandsons will get angry
    Its happened everywhere else in the west.
    It will happen here, unless we only get the “good’ ones!
    
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    February 4, 2018 9:29am
  - VicParking
    
    The Manus 750 to start with.
    
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    February 4, 2018 9:40am
- Longknives
  
  “By bringing in more Muslim immigrants.
  …
  Why again?.
  Why?.”
  
  The answer is quite simple.
  Ardern desperately wants her ‘Dream Job’ at the United Nations.
  And she is prepared to sacrifice innocent New Zealand lives to get there.
  *Think about that next time you see this repugnant Woman and her sleazebucket partner smirking at you from the cover of a Woman’s magazine…
  
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  February 4, 2018 9:06am
kowtow

In these days of feminism and hashtag activism there’s an irony in the fact that it was a woperson who illegally let all these Muslim migrants into Germany (and thereby Europe) creating a rape crisis.
Yet our media obsess about an Jewish American Hollyweird mogul.

http://www.breitbart.com/london/2018/02/03/recently-released-sex-offender-migrant-arrested-raping-13-year-old-girl/
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February 4, 2018 8:20am
- stephieboy
  
  Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
  kowtow , there is good reason to doubt Breibart after their feature fake news item over Dortmund ,
  
  https://www.thelocal.de/20170105/german-media-blasts-misleading-breitbart-reports-of-violence-on-new-years
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:24am
  - VicParking
    
    The mistakes, originally from German news reports:
    No the fireworks only set fire to the scaffolding not the roof.
    The “fireworks were launched at the church” but this does not prove the fire was started intentionally.
    “allahu akbar” which mean God is great does not mean they were Muslim.
    Just because they were waving ISIS flags does not mean they are terrorists.
    Morning Stephie ??, pull you head in and you dk out.
    
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    February 4, 2018 9:52am
- GoVege
  
  The poor refugees can’t help raping young women.
  They’ve been raised since childhood to believe that women exist only to serve and service men.
  And any female not covered from head to toe and chaperoned by her big brother or dad is a slut or prostitute “asking for it”.
  The real culprits are the blind fools letting these neanderthals into their countries.
  
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  February 4, 2018 7:29pm
stephieboy

Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
Another angle on the President in deep shit , let alone , the damp squib of Nemo memo,

“Russia expert’s theory of the Trump scandal”

“Why the collusion story begins with money, not politics.”

“To understand the roots of the collusion, set aside Putin and follow the money.”

That’s what Seva Gunitsky, a politics professor at the University of Toronto and the author of Aftershocks, told me in a September interview. I reached out to Gunitsky after he posted a short but incisive thread on Twitter about the financial roots of the Trump-Russia collusion case.

Gunitsky, who was raised in Russia, has followed the evolving relationship between Donald Trump and Russia for more than a decade. He says the prevailing narrative about Putin interfering in the American election in order to undermine democracy is wildly overstated.

Putin is happy to sow confusion and distrust in America’s system, of course, but to assume that’s the basis of this operation is to overlook a much simpler motive: money….”

By Sean Illing@seanillingsean.illing@vox.com Updated Jan 3, 2018, 9:49am EST
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February 4, 2018 8:21am
- Scott
  
  You are so right as usual stephieboy. The democrats have alleged for the past year that a political party has actively colluded with Russia to swing the election.
  However it turns out it was them!
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:33am
  - stephieboy
    
    Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
    Scott ,” it was them… “ ??
    
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    February 4, 2018 8:35am
- Scott
  
  One must ask, how is this not Watergate? The democrats and the Obama administration spied on the Trump campaign during and after the election!
  How is that not Watergate?
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:35am
  - stephieboy
    
    Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
    Scott , as the Nunes memo is a dud ( see below ) how can it be said the former President spied on the Trump campaign watergate style ?
    
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    February 4, 2018 8:42am
  - Milhous
    
    Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
    It’s not watergate as your statement is fictional and delusional
    
    Whereas Watergate actually occurred.
    
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    February 4, 2018 8:45am
    - GazzaW
      
      Good morning ztev.
      
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      February 4, 2018 10:49am
      - labrator
        
        Despite claiming to work alone from home for his own personal satisfaction ztev only contributes Mon-Friday, 9 to 5.
        
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        February 4, 2018 1:42pm
    - Ed Snack
      
      Of course it’s not Watergate, that was in 1968. This one though, is worse. Why is it acceptable to you (and others) that an administration can use the FBI and DOJ to spy on an opposition campaign in an attempt to swing an election ? Of course since it was Obama it was so incompetently done that they not only left their fingerprints all over the machinations (which would not have mattered if Clinton had won of course) but they also failed to swing the election.
      
      We know as fact that the Steele Dossier was paid opposition research, paid for by the Clinton campaign. Confirmed fact, no dispute, right ?
      
      We have testimony on oath from McCabe that the dossier was instrumental in obtaining the FISA court warrant to spy on the Trump campaign. So confirmed fact, no dispute, right ?
      
      So opposition research which has not even yet been confirmed in any significant material fact – and that lack of confirmation was concealed from the FISA court judge – was used with the FBI and DOJ being aware at the time of the origin of the dossier. True ?
      
      If you dispute these elements please say on what grounds, they seem pretty well established.
      
      And that doesn’t sound wrong to you ?
      
      At the height of the Watergate scandal, Nixon attempted to use the CIA and IRS to obtain potentially damaging material on those attacking hm and following up on the Watergate story. He did not succeed in doing so and was widely reviled for making the attempt. Obama successfully used the IRS and it seems the FBI and other agencies to spy on his opponents, and somehow now it’s OK ?
      
      One further matter, the Russian material, does anyone think that the Russian FSB was not involved in supplying and sourcing that ? According to Steele it came from high placed Russian officials, take him at his word for a change and think, what high placed offical would risk communicating potentially valuable information to a known ex MI-6 officer (who was persona non grata in Russia so could not travel there himself) without clearing with the FSB ? If you think they would risk it I have a bridge that you’re likely to be interested in buying….
      
      So Clinton took Russian security services supplied “bait” and manipulated her supporters in the FBI and DOJ into using it to obtain illegal surveillance of the Trump campaign. And Trump is the one supposedly colluding with the Russians ? Really ?
      
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      February 4, 2018 11:42am
      - cha
        
        We have testimony on oath from McCabe that the dossier was instrumental in obtaining the FISA court warrant to spy on the Trump campaign.
        
        No, Nunes’ memo alleges that, and it’s been contradicted by a sitting member of the Committee on Intelligence.
        
        Rep. Eric Swalwell disputes the characterization made in the Nunes FISA Abuse Memo that deputy FBI director testified to the House Intelligence Committee that the Steele Dossier was the main piece of evidence used to obtain a FISA warrant to spy on a member of the Trump campaign. “He didn’t say that,” Swalwell said.
        
        https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2018/02/02/rep_swalwell_nunes_memo_misquotes_mccabes_statement_about_steele_dossierfisa_warrant.html
        
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        February 4, 2018 11:57am
      - Ed Snack
        
        Cha, OK, if that testimony was under oath we’ll find out.
        
        Note that it is alleged that an earlier FISA application to surveil Page in June was most unusually turned down – only 2 of many thousands of such requests have ever been refused in their entirety. So what ever in formation that was used in that application was no doubt bolstered by something to get approval in October – though probably from a different judge.
        
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        February 4, 2018 1:25pm
  - NK
    
    The GOP spied on Trump during the primary campaign. Why no mention of that?
    
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    February 4, 2018 8:49am
    - Ed Snack
      
      The GOP did nothing of the sort, what rubbish. They (that is the candidates and their supporters, not the GOP itself) commissioned “opposition research” as all campaigns do, I’d bet that Clinton did so on Sanders and vice verse for example. You want to find out what weaknesses they may have that you could exploit.
      
      They may have had insiders in the campaign, in fact I wouldn’t be surprised if just about all of the GOP candidates did some sort of “research”on each of the other 15 candidates.
      
      That’s not spying, that’s not using the NSA and the enormous array of surveillance techniques that the US government has to literally spy on a campaign. That’s normal politics and is expected.
      
      If one candidate had literally bugged another, that would be illegal and no doubt would have been a disqualified for that candidate if it became known.
      
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      February 4, 2018 11:49am
      - NK
        
        OK, fair enough. But they commissioned the same unit to compile a dossier on Trump as the DNC did. So the use of Fusion GPS by the DNC can’t really be questioned.
        
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        February 4, 2018 12:07pm
      - Ed Snack
        
        NK, the Washington Free Beacon commissioned Fusion GPS to do opposition research on Trump, and terminated that when it became obvious that he would be the nominee.
        
        Fusion did not go outside the USA as far as we know for any information that they supplied to the WFB.
        
        The issue isn’t the employment of Fusion at all, all campaigns conduct opposition research, despite it being a real off the wall campaign that didn’t follow the usual methods, I’d bet that someone in the Trump campaign commissioned some opposition research on Hillary Clinton.
        
        What is different in this case:
        
        The Clinton campaign paid Fusion via lawyers Perkins Coie and improperly classified the cost as legal expenses, a small point but typical;
        
        Fusion went off shore and paid Christopher Steele for research, and Steele ostensibly went to Russia and paid for research there. It is strictly illegal for a campaign to gain material benefit or pay to gain a benefit from a foreign person, so Fusion and through them the Clinton campaign are breaking the Collusion laws.
        
        Further, the Fusion commission research is fed to the FBI and the news media via a number of channels. Steele contacted John McCain as a noted anti-Trump Republican and gave him a copy, Steele also briefed Yahoo News, and Buzzfeed who later released the dossier after the election. The FBI failed to validate anything material in the Dossier before they used it to get a surveillance warrant.
        
        Now as another comment says, if the Mongrel mob came to the police with supposed information on a serious crime being committed by the Hells Angels, you might as the Police consider it, but you’d certainly want corroboration. Otherwise it is an easy tactic in a gang conflict isn’t it, just allege a crime by the other side and watch the police go in. No way they act without significant validation.
        
        In this dossier case, the FBI claimed that a news report by Yahoo was independent validation but they did not disclose that they were aware that it was in no way independent but just another reveal of the exact same data. And to this day, nothing material in the dossier has been confirmed despite a good deal of work by the FBI and others.
        
        That’s what is different, it’s not the opposition research, it’s the illegal nature of that research – Prima facile it is collusion with the Russians, and they way it was fed back to an acted upon without validation by the FBI. I am of the opinion that you need a lot of validation before it becomes in any way the slightest bit reasonable to conduct surveillance on an opposition campaign by the government at the height of a closely contested election campaign.
        
        To add to the unsavoury nature of the surveillance, a most unusual amount of “unmasking”of US citizen’s data was conducted at the same time almost certainly on this campaign surveillance. Murkier still, a lot of the unmasking were requested in the name of Samantha Powers who claimed, under oath, that she did not request those – that alone would be highly illegal. Add in the fact that the NSA conducted an audit of the use of FISA intercepts around this time and concluded that over 85% of the reviews of the data relating to US citizens was improper and done outside the rules established. Plus, private organisations (believed but not confirmed to be Fusion GPS and Crowdstrike) were being granted illegal and improper access to the surveillance material. The NSA cut off the access and at least attempted to apply the rules as written. The day after the rules were stringently applied, Fusion GPS employee and wife of the 4th ranked DOJ official Nellie Ohr visited the Whitehouse, no reason stated and who she visited redacted.
        
        There’s enough circumstantial evidence in my opinion to call for a truly independent special counsel to investigate this thoroughly with all participants including former Obama cabinet members placed under oath. One thing a democracy cannot have is the security services acting in a partisan manner to attempt to change the outcome of elections. This is so serious and with enough known true information to suggest that this has happened, it must be properly investigated and not just whitewashed.
        
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        February 4, 2018 1:17pm
  - Kiwi Dave
    
    If true, far worse than Watergate in that the current scandal has involved not just politicians, but at least one corrupted government agency which the public would normally expect to defend the constitution rather than subvert it.
    
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    February 4, 2018 9:00am
    - NK
      
      Was the FISA judge corrupt too?
      
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      February 4, 2018 9:04am
      - Ross12
        
        The Judges probably were not corrupt –they just were not given all the relevant information.
        
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        February 4, 2018 9:10am
      - Kiwi Dave
        
        Not that I’m aware of. The FBI, however….
        
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        February 4, 2018 9:14am
      - NK
        
        The Judges probably were not corrupt –they just were not given all the relevant information.
        
        That’s according to the Memo. Not according to law as there is no legal requirement in the FISA application process to show alleged political bias.
        
        That’s why the Memo is a crock – it gives partisan political views and states them as legal truths.
        
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        February 4, 2018 9:19am
      - gravedodger
        
        No NK the FISA warrant was obtained and then renewed using the Steele Document and the Judge was never told where it originated and who funded it. I bet that judge is one unhappy Chappy.
        
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        February 4, 2018 9:37am
      - Inandout
        
        That is doubtful, but the judge was fed false information and the FBI hierarchy was complicit. This bias by top officials is unlawful.
        
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        February 4, 2018 9:37am
      - thedavincimode
        
        Not according to law as there is no legal requirement in the FISA application process to show alleged political bias.
        
        Not sure if you’re being disingenuous or plain stupid. The obligation is to disclose all material information. It’s over to the Judge to make decisions about bias and no doubt, whether a warrant is justified even where there are signs of bias.
        
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        February 4, 2018 9:49am
      - NK
        
        No NK the FISA warrant was obtained and then renewed using the Steele Document and the Judge was never told where it originated and who funded it.
        
        There is huge debate over whether the Warrant would have been granted without the Steele dossier. The memo asserts it wouldn’t have been. But that can be ignored because it’s the view of the Republicans who obviously want that outcome.
        
        But regardless, you ignored what I said. The law did not require the FBI to disclose in their application that Steele was partially paid by the Democrats. In other words, that there might have been a political motive.
        
        Anyway, some media are now reporting the FBI did disclose it. This ain’t over.
        
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        February 4, 2018 9:53am
      - NK
        
        I am someone who has some experience in asking judges to grant both search warrants, and interception warrants.
        
        The political background to the evidential basis leading to the application is largely immaterial.
        
        If the Black Power had come to us and told us the Hells Angels were importing methamphetamine in paint tins (which they did) do you think we disclosed to the Judge that the initial information came from a competing gang? If we had corroborative evidence as to the importation, do you think the Judge would have considered the initial information “material” to his or her decision to grant the warrant?
        
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        February 4, 2018 10:02am
      - cha
        
        and the Judge was never told where it originated and who funded it.
        
        I guess it depends on the court’s definition of ample disclosure of relevant, material facts.
        
        The court that approved surveillance of a former campaign adviser to President Trump was aware that some of the information underpinning the warrant request was paid for by a political entity, although the application did not specifically name the Democratic National Committee or the Hillary Clinton presidential campaign, according to two U.S. officials familiar with the matter.
        
        A now-declassified Republican memo alleged that the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court was duped into approving the wiretap request by a politicized FBI and Justice Department. The memo was written by House Intelligence Committee Republicans and alleged a “troubling breakdown of legal processes” flowing from the government’s wiretapping of former Trump aide Carter Page.
        
        But its central allegation — that the government failed to disclose a source’s political bias — is baseless, the officials said.
        
        The Justice Department made “ample disclosure of relevant, material facts” to the court that revealed “the research was being paid for by a political entity,” said one official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the matter’s sensitivity.
        
        https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/justice-dept-told-court-of-sources-political-bias-in-request-to-wiretap-ex-trump-campaign-aide-officials-say/2018/02/02/caecfa86-0852-11e8-8777-2a059f168dd2_story.html?utm_term=.f23270d6decc
        
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        February 4, 2018 10:10am
      - Ed Snack
        
        Not necessarily though we don’t have any information about that. They were certainly given misleading information and significant information was NOT given to the court, and that if material is perjury and perversion of justice.
        
        It is reported but to what extent confirmed I’m not sure, that an earlier request by the FBI/DOJ to conduct surveillance on the Trump campaign made in June 2016 was turned down. Given that only 2 of many thousands of requests to the FISA court were refused in their entirety , that seems significant if true. The Judge (there’s I think at least seven judges who serve on the FISA court and do a weekly stint, so not likely to be the same judge for the June and October hearings) must have thought that the case was so weak and so political likely enough, that the original request was refused.
        
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        February 4, 2018 11:55am
      - thedavincimode
        
        If the Black Power had come to us and told us the Hells Angels were importing methamphetamine in paint tins (which they did) do you think we disclosed to the Judge that the initial information came from a competing gang?
        
        It’s pretty clear now that you wouldn’t have. It’s also clear that if your wife just happened to be employed by the BPs and helped produce the “evidence”, and the wife of the other big cheese who signed your application just happened to get free meth from the MPs, that might slip your mind also.
        
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        February 4, 2018 5:28pm
  - KevOB
    
    This is worse. Watergate was some bumbling amateurs who broke in and got caught. Assisting them trapped a few high officials and indirectly the President. They paid the “Plumbers” from cash in brown paper bags kept in a safe in the Oval Office. High comedy. Nixon’s charges by the Senate were technical based on his memory of what he might have surreptitiously recorded in his office.
    
    The present scenario shows top officials using a court improperly to spy on a presidential campaign. At stake is the rule of law and breaches of duty to uphold that by sworn officials.
    
    The memo is a brief report by a Congressional committee to Congress–a statement of facts about official conduct.
    
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    February 4, 2018 9:11am
    - Inandout
      
      And Trump is aware of other damaging information. The carrying on by the Dems/CNN and FBI officials to try to pin a Russian fable on Trump to divert attention from their memo is almost comedic.
      
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      February 4, 2018 9:43am
    - NK
      
      The present scenario shows top officials using a court improperly to spy on a presidential campaign. At stake is the rule of law and breaches of duty to uphold that by sworn officials.
      
      First, it isn’t proven to be improper. Only the Republicans are saying it was, and of course they’d say that. The Rule of Law, which you seem to cherish so much, requires the Supreme Court to rule on the validity of the application, and the grant of the warrant, not some political memo.
      
      Second, you are completely correct as to what is at stake. That is why it is constitutionally outrageous for Trump to attack law enforcement officials by declassifying and releasing the memo. As I said here yesterday, think back to the Helen Clark/Peter Doone saga, and how disgraceful her actions were in removing the police commissioner from his role. The similarities are striking, and constitutionally it was wrong for her to behave like that, as it is for Trump to.
      
      He obviously considers himself above the law. He fires anyone in an enforcement role who seeks to challenge him, or might threaten him (Comey & Yates come to mind). I am sure that next in his firing line will be Rod Rosenstein.
      
      Trump acolytes shout it out as “draining the swamp” More dispassionate observers know it as an”authoritarian dictatorship”.
      
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      February 4, 2018 11:36am
      - oob
        
        Well said, NK. Absolutely bang on.
        
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        February 4, 2018 12:00pm
      - Ed Snack
        
        I don’t think you actually understand what is going on. It is true that it is not “proven” to be improper as yet, it is alleged to be so and looking at what confirmed facts we have that is certainly how it looks to me. I would suggest that a very high bar is needed before it would be appropriate for the administration to spy upon the opposition presidential candidate. That bar is NOT met by using Russian FSB supplied material paid for by the other candidates campaign.
        
        Can you agree that:
        
        The Steele Dossier was paid for by the Clinton Campaign;
        The dossier’s contents were not (and have not been) in any material form confirmed and in some cases shown to be definitively false – and if you disagree please point out what items in it are confirmed;
        That Dossier was instrumental in obtaining the FISA warrant – and that’s according to sworn testimony by Andrew McCabe.
        
        Further, it is supposition but well founded supposition I would claim, that the Russian sourced evidence in the dossier was either supplied by or at least vetted by the Russian Security Sevices, the FSB.
        
        Are you still claiming that it is, on the face of it, ethical to use that dossier to spy on an opposition campaign ?
        
        Trump firing Comey – actually done after a specifically requested legal opinion was prepared by the then deputy AG, Rosenstein, advised that he should be fired.Rosenstein is complicit in the whole dossier charade. Yates, she deliberately disobeyed a legal order from her commander in chief, she simply had to be fired for gross insubordination. She had no grounds to act as she did.
        
        And as for releasing the memo, there’s nothing in it that is in the l ast bit secret or classified, except the one secret that so many don’t want out in the open – that the top level of the FBI and DOJ are heavily politicised and acted in a totally partisan and illegal way. Why do you want illegal or even only potentially seriously illegal activity covered up and why don’t you trust the public to have the information available to make up their own minds ?
        
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        February 4, 2018 12:12pm
      - KevOB
        
        This was a report to Congress alleging certain conduct. For any of this to be proven true criminal charges could arise.
        It does not need another Court to define a breach of duty. Lying or not giving the full facts to a Court is never implied in any schedule of duties–it may be perjury.
        
        The rule of law is the application of the law: perjury is not within the rules. How would you like to be arrested and have a law officer lie to obtain your conviction? How can any society work like that?
        
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        February 4, 2018 1:03pm
      - NK
        
        I don’t think you actually understand what is going on. It is true that it is not “proven” to be improper as yet, it is alleged to be so and looking at what confirmed facts we have that is certainly how it looks to me. I would suggest that a very high bar is needed before it would be appropriate for the administration to spy upon the opposition presidential candidate. That bar is NOT met by using Russian FSB supplied material paid for by the other candidates campaign.
        
        Technically they were spying on Carter Page, not Trump. And Page definitely visited Russia and met government officials. In fact, even Republicans doubted his testimony on the extent of his purported “meetings” with said Russian officials, with one saying that page appears to not know the difference between “a meeting, a greeting, a conversation, and…hearing a speech.”
        
        Can you agree that:
        
        The Steele Dossier was paid for by the Clinton Campaign;
        
        Partly it was, yes.
        
        The dossier’s contents were not (and have not been) in any material form confirmed and in some cases shown to be definitively false – and if you disagree please point out what items in it are confirmed;
        
        That would take an essay, and I don’t have time. But Steele was a very credible agent used by many agencies before this matter came to light. From what I’ve read, the Steele Dossier is not “definitively false” as you state
        
        That Dossier was instrumental in obtaining the FISA warrant – and that’s according to sworn testimony by Andrew McCabe.
        
        I’ve read articles that say that was not his testimony at all. I’m happy to be proven wrong. That is an allegation in the Nunes Memo, which, as I say, is nothing more than a one-sided partisan piece of political rhetoric.
        
        Further, it is supposition but well founded supposition I would claim, that the Russian sourced evidence in the dossier was either supplied by or at least vetted by the Russian Security Sevices, the FSB.
        
        Pass.
        
        Are you still claiming that it is, on the face of it, ethical to use that dossier to spy on an opposition campaign ?
        
        This is US politics – nothing is ethical. But the ethics of it is irrelevant. If the legal bases stacked up for the FISA application then that’s all that’s required.
        
        And as for releasing the memo, there’s nothing in it that is in the last bit secret or classified, except the one secret that so many don’t want out in the open – that the top level of the FBI and DOJ are heavily politicised and acted in a totally partisan and illegal way. Why do you want illegal or even only potentially seriously illegal activity covered up and why don’t you trust the public to have the information available to make up their own minds ?
        
        This is the whole friggin’ point I am trying to make. The Memo is NOT evidence of that. It is one person’s view, or rather, one political party’s view.
        
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        February 4, 2018 1:04pm
- Harkman
  
  Vox is fake news.
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:50am
  - Milhous
    
    There is a real Dotcomesque “Moment of Truth” with respect to this memo.
    
    A whole lot of hype behind a whole lot of nothing……and we know how that ended politicallly for its protagonist.
    
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    February 4, 2018 8:58am
    - Ed Snack
      
      If it is such a “nothing” why were the Democrats and the FBI and DOJ so adamantly opposed to it being made public ?
      
      Claims were made that it would reveal classified information and be a serious security exposure. Now we’ve seen it, unredacted as originally prepared but for a few grammatical corrections (apparently), that is seen to be a series of absolute lies ! There’s nothing in it of that nature.
      
      So why did Schiff lie so consistently about it, and lie he did. Why did Rosenstein threaten to subpoena the texts and emails of the GOP Congressional members of the intelligence committee (threatening those given constitutional oversight of your actions is, on the face of it, extremely unwise), why did the FBI etc tell so many lies about it.
      
      Why ?
      
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      February 4, 2018 12:16pm
- billr
  
  This will probably upset you guys with a hard-on for Trump: so be it.
  
  Rachel Maddow is a bit OTT, but it’s all there: the memo is a damp squib, especially the last line, the investigation started in 2016.
  
  https://youtu.be/z6uGZ0dp_E4?t=1032
  
  roll on the down ticks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  
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  February 4, 2018 5:29pm
Happychappy

The hypocrisy of Winston Peters and I wonder if these three will agree with his statement, Selwyn Cushing, Jim Peron and Brendo Horon were all victims of Parliamentary Priveledge and Stuff had this to say in 2012, “they can defame people under Parliamentry Privilege and their victims have no legal recourse, Winston Peters has along history of making allegations under Parliamentary Priveledge.
So to Winstons statement, In a free society there there are no more fundamental elements than a individual’s freedom of speech, their right to privacy and for the fourth estate to operate freely. However, these freedoms are not unfetted they come with responsibilities one cannot needlessly yell ” fire ” in a crowded picture theatre breach anothers privacy or be at liberty to print untruths. When one of these pillars crumble and what was said a long time ago, it believes everyman who values liberty of conscience for himself to resist the invasion of it by others.
You would think that Winston should practice what he preaches but it seems their is one rule for him and Winston First Law for others.
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February 4, 2018 8:28am
- Chuck Bird
  
  Jim Peron is one sick puppy. We do not need those types in NZ.
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:56am
  - Happychappy
    
    I am not disputing that Chuck but he has the same right as Winston when it comes to slander and the point I am making is you Can’t have two laws one for Winston and different for all others.
    
    20 2
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    February 4, 2018 9:17am
    - holysheet
      
      Yes you can. The drunken dwarf is special didn’t you know….
      He only got the barest of votes and yet he is the one who anointed the govt and chompers as PM.
      
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      February 4, 2018 9:51am
  - NK
    
    We also don’t need Winston in our parliament.
    
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    February 4, 2018 11:15am
- tf78
  
  I saw another quote from Winston yesterday, he said it in 1996.
  “MPs have to be free to follow their conscience. They were elected to represent their constituents, not swear and oath of blind allegiance to a political party. If an MP feels that membership in another elected party better serves his or her constituents…..”
  
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  February 4, 2018 9:40am
  - KiWombat
    
    We have a culture, and an electoral system, where there is absolutely no incentive for many of our MP’s to represent their constituents.
    
    Look at the Greens – they have no desire to represent a constituency, and make no serious attempt to even look like they have that desire. They simply fly populist arguments, then collect a bundle of support budgets for them to churn out propaganda, and pay students to collect signatures.
    
    Even the WeeWinnie First party only had one semi serious electorate contender – the others just jump aboard the gravy train.
    
    The two main parties are also culpable – they both do sweetheart deals to keep numbers up.
    
    Revamp the system and cut out the gravy train !!
    
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    February 4, 2018 11:16am
flipper

Stupidboy has again escaped from the Mason Clinic. Lake Alice should be re-opened to hold idiots such as SBoy, zetev, Morrissey and a few others, all writing(sic) out of Fraser House.
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February 4, 2018 8:29am
- VicParking
  
  They are all safely ensconced in Labour Party headquarters. If you attack them you attack the bump which is a no no.
  
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  February 4, 2018 9:59am
kowtow

Very interesting , particularly the last paragraph. Oxford professor .

” Sources close to the investigation said women who have testified anonymously during three months of preliminary investigations might now also file rape complaints.

The claims against Ramadan, a Swiss citizen whose grandfather founded Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood movement, emerged in the wake of the Harvey Weinstein scandal in the United States.

He has denied them, claiming he is the victim of a smear campaign.

Critics of the Muslim scholar have long claimed that despite his moderate stance he preaches a more radical line when addressing Muslims in Arabic.”

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/02/03/oxford-professor-islamic-studies-tariq-ramadan-charged-france/
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February 4, 2018 8:33am
- stephieboy
  
  Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
  Kowtow ,
  
  seems the Professor was a startling role model in the present US incumbent .
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:37am
- Swifty
  
  I’ve watched and listened to Ramadam for years – primarily because of the debates between him and Christopher Hitchens on Youtube.
  
  Never found him particularly convincing in his arguments and, at times, struggled to understand him. Too waffly for me.
  
  However, that aside, I always raise an eyebrow when people claim ‘conspiracies’ against themselves when found in a spot of bother – especially politicians.
  
  I often think of that corrupt, dishonest and slimy Auckland Labour local body politician Daljit Singh in cases like these who, when charged with electoral fraud, (ballot stuffing, and striking at the very heart of our democratic system) burst out in the media claiming it was a hit job by his political opponents to prevent him gaining office. Absolute lies of course – the fraudulent voting papers were found to have been faxed in from his home fax machine! He and his co-offenders were duly found guilty.
  
  I hardly think Ramadam’s case is a mere ‘smear campaign’. This is women coming out and identifying themselves and providing specifics (locations, dates and times etc) about alleged srious sexual assaults.
  
  I suspect ol’ Tariq’s life is about to irrevocably change…..
  
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  February 4, 2018 9:10am
Manolo

Trump claims victory:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/house-releases-gop-surveillance-memo-1517592392

The senile complains:
http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2018/02/02/pelosi-nunes-trump-gop-memo/
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February 4, 2018 8:36am
- stephieboy
  
  Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
  Manolo , your idol can claim no such thing as the memo shows no such FBI bias towards him , The memo is a damp squib that tells us nothing ,
  
  “The Nunes memo is a dud”
  
  Devin Nunes’s memo allegedly exposing anti-Trump bias at the FBI does nothing of the kind.
  
  https://www.vox.com/world/2018/2/2/16965086/nunes-memo-dud-release
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:44am
  - Ross12
    
    Here is a hint for you sb.
    Look at the memo and see how they have underlined not in the bit that says “not under Title VII ” and understand they went after Page under Title I. Then do some research on the difference between the two and think about why they did it.
    As we said yesterday –if it is a dud why did the FIB/DoJ fight so hard to have it not released and then fight for redactions of names ? Does that make sense to you ?
    We can expect plenty of articles like Vox in the next few days as the left try to dismiss it. But you and they have to understand this is just the start not the end. Sen Glassey is trying to get his memo declassified and released –maybe hard because in his case they have to get DoJ approval.( Different process to Congress).
    
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    February 4, 2018 9:20am
    - Inandout
      
      Dullboy will search the internet for anything that goes along with his IslamoDem beliefs. I have listened to Hannity and tried to find any flaws in his arguments, but he is spot on. Issue by issue he dissects the Memo background, together with legal advice, and he seems on the right track. More woes for the FBI and Democrats await. The other issue of Trump’s speech and the Dems sitting like mute spoiled children has negatively resonated with the voting public.
      
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      February 4, 2018 9:54am
    - axeman
      
      And the pissed off FBI agents are already blowing the whistle on what some of their corrupt superiors got up to. Imagine what they reveal when this national scandal goes to trial.
      
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      February 5, 2018 1:35am
  - VicParking
    
    No wonder you have they views you do if you read Vox. A Government organisation used false information paid for by a political party to spy on another political party. Pure and simple GoatBoy.
    
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    February 4, 2018 10:04am
- NK
  
  Trump frequently claims all sorts of things, a lot of which are bullshit. The most recent examples are the lies in his State of the Union address. Before that was his claim over fewer air crash deaths because of his law changes, which was a complete lie.
  
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  February 4, 2018 9:10am
  - VicParking
    
    Quote a few lies NK
    
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    February 4, 2018 10:05am
  - kevn
    
    nk… You need to check out our own prime minister for uttering un-truths.
    Leave Trump to do his thing.
    
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    February 4, 2018 10:29am
Digmen1

Yes I wonder why Trump put up with the left bashing him so much for a whole year.

His SOTU speech was great, and the dems look shattered and out of touch.

Time to fight back.
Tell the FBI to investigate Hillary!
Drain the swamp
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February 4, 2018 8:43am
- NK
  
  The FBI did investigate her *during* the campaign (her emails) and actually publicly announced it, which she was furious about.
  
  Surely that’s FBI bias against her?
  
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  February 4, 2018 8:53am
  - stephieboy
    
    Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
    NK , good point !
    
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    February 4, 2018 8:59am
    - NK
      
      A valid point, one would think. But met with 22 downticks. That shows clearly the cognitive dissonance of many commenters here.
      
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      February 4, 2018 11:25am
      - stephieboy
        
        NK , exactly !
        
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        February 4, 2018 1:10pm
  - Ed Snack
    
    When it became public, the FBI more or less had to investigate. Clinton broke a number of laws relating to her emails:
    
    There was classified information on her server, verified fact – and that is illegal with no intent needed;
    She committed perjury, swearing before a federal judge that she released all relevant emails. However the FBI recovered a number of emails that were deemed relevant but had not been released – that’s perjury;
    After receiving a valid subpoena for all her emails, over 30,000 of them were deleted and scrubbed from the server and from backups – that’s obstruction of Justice.
    
    The FBI only focused on the security aspects and decLined to investigate the perjury and obstruction of justice offences, for no good reason but probably because they were too easy to prove.
    
    The FBI entirely botched the email investigation and decided long before the end that they would not recommend pressing charges, and not because of a lack of evidence, the original Comey statement he drafted said she was extremely negligent which met the legal standard for prosecution. That was toned down.
    
    I know many of you think that Hillary Clinton is a sort of much put-upon saint, but she has a long history of criminal behaviour and unfortunately for the American people, of getting away with it. When her email system shenanigans became public they could not just be swept under the rug, so they had to be investigated. However as we have seen, the fix was in and she was never, regardless of the facts, going to be charged over it.
    
    Just worth noting, Obama claimed that he had no prior knowledge of Clinton’s use of a private email server (using addresses @clintonmail.com), which makes it all the stranger that the FBI found (and removed from their report on th matter) that Obama personally sent over 20 messages to HRC while she was in Russia (so over insecure coms) at her private address. So was he just too clueless to know what an email address is, or just lying yet again ?
    
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    February 4, 2018 12:31pm
- Harkman
  
  “Tell the FBI to investigate Hillary!”
  
  The problem seems to be finding where the FBI starts and the Clinton Campaign ends.
  
  43 3
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  February 4, 2018 9:11am
- Inandout
  
  As a smart businessman, he is merely letting the Left hang themselves, as he would with a dumb business competitor.
  
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  February 4, 2018 9:57am
Huevon

Stephie is up early this morning to defend morally reprehensible Democrats and Muslim sex offenders…mate, seriously, what is your problem?
37 2
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February 4, 2018 8:57am
- stigie
  
  “seriously, what is your problem?”
  
  The goats would not put out this morning !~
  
  23 2
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  February 4, 2018 9:04am
- VicParking
  
  If you had to smell a Goats arse every night you to would have a problem ??
  
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  February 4, 2018 10:07am
stephieboy

Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
Huevon , never mind the dud Nune report and rapist and groping offenders like the President and said Professor ,focus instead on this ,

More on the never ending amazing Jacinda effect ,

Claire Trevett: ‘Rock star’ Jacinda Ardern charms iwi leaders at Waitangi

“When Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern arrived to meet the Maori Wardens on her charm offensive of Maori at Waitangi,

kaumatua Henare Hape asked quietly if he could hold her hand.
“I can hold your hand,” Ardern replied and reached out for it.

The visit to the Maori Wardens was the second item on Ardern’s five day Waitangi sojourn, and the delighted welcome and selfies with the aunties afterwards would have come as a relief after the meeting before it….”

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11987145
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February 4, 2018 9:01am
- Huevon
  
  “I can hold your hand”, Ardern replied.
  
  Excuse me while I throw up.
  
  42 2
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  February 4, 2018 9:08am
  - waikatogirl
    
    He asked quietly if he could hold her hand.
    
    That’s just creepy!
    
    39 3
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    February 4, 2018 9:12am
    - waikatogirl
      
      An appropriate reply from Cindy to this bloke could have been, thank you for the offer but I already get all the hand holding I need. ?
      
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      February 4, 2018 12:37pm
- Inandout
  
  Is Hape going to be sued by Cindy in 30 years?
  
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  February 4, 2018 10:01am
- Rodney Randall
  
  Maori Wardens.
  
  Fat sacks of shit. (90% were grossly obese.)
  
  Used to hang around chch bus terminal pre quake to ‘police’ F#$wit youth.
  
  Achieved nothing and were scrapped.
  Fat sacks of shit
  
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  February 4, 2018 11:05am
  - oob
    
    The Maori Wardens have been completely sucked in by a Scientology front group:
    
    http://www.maoritelevision.com/news/national/maori-wardens-and-church-scientology
    
    I doubt Taxinda will do anything about this as she was raised in an abusive cult herself.
    
    18 2
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    February 4, 2018 12:06pm
    - Rodney Randall
      
      Farkin joke
      
      9 1
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      February 4, 2018 12:41pm
kowtow

This country needs the death penalty for these animals.

‘Parole has been declined for Dartelle Alder, who murdered Wellington woman Margaret Lynne Baxter in 2001.

Alder, who is now 40, was aged 23 when he ran her down with his car as she was jogging in Hawke’s Bay. He then dumped her in his car and drove to a house, where he raped her before stabbing her more than 30 times. Alder killed Baxter by smashing a terracotta tile on her head’

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/101114935/parole-declined-for-dartelle-alder-who-killed-margaret-baxter-in-2001
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February 4, 2018 9:04am
- starboard
  
  Just another violent out of control mouldy. Skin the MF alive then feed him to the crocs.
  
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  February 4, 2018 9:55am
Harkman

I’m an ignorant Cantab, and I remember Looney Len Brown all to well. But is Phil Goff actually worse?

I nearly choked on my dinner when I saw Goff campaign as a fiscal conservative in 2016. But he is promising money for all sorts of things (the Art gallery etc). Let’s see how this turns out.
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February 4, 2018 9:09am
- Huevon
  
  Goff has many faults but at least he isn’t… how do we say… engaging in vigorous debate with the Asian community representative in the Ngati Whatua room.
  
  In all seriousness, the Right really needs to get its act together in Auckland. This nonsense of standing 3 right wing candidates at the election has to stop.
  
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  February 4, 2018 9:27am
  - niggly
    
    The other problem you have is if the right-wing candidates don’t have the WO’s seal of approval, they will run smear campaigns against them.
    
    Then after months of negative press and dirt, some WO approved candidate steps in to enter the race at the last minute with virtually zero wider public recognition and history with the community.
    
    And then all right-wing candidates unsurprisingly fail. That was 2016.
    
    Everything comes with a cost. Candidate PR campaigns usually aren’t free. But is that all that matters?
    
    Yet Aucklanders deserve better (especially when the likes of Phil Goff directly benefits from this side-show circus)!
    
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    February 4, 2018 11:25am
  - MrLovebucket
    
    Goff is rogering the ratepayers instead
    
    2 0
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    February 4, 2018 7:41pm
Felt

Dow down, NZ market will be down Monday, business confidence will drop (again), Cindy will come back from Waitangi with some more bills, tax take will drop as people stop spending, COL requests for $ increases, employees not happy so strike, unions support them, Govt supports union, pay rise all round, bus confidence drops (again), to be continued….
34 1
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February 4, 2018 9:12am
- Digmen1
  
  Yes and NZF will, as always, want to spend up large, Jacinda is giving free money away to bludgers, and Grant baby has to try to keep within his budget.
  
  Something will have to give.
  And it will probably be the NZ working tax payer.
  
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  February 4, 2018 9:48am
thedavincimode

Looks like the Kenyan doesn’t realise we’ve got an extradition treaty with the US.
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February 4, 2018 9:16am
Southern Raider

Recent studies in Germany and Austria show over 50% of Muslim immigrants believe Sharia Law trumps and national laws.

They have also found that many are now more religious than in their home countries.
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February 4, 2018 9:24am
- kowtow
  
  “Exciting”. It’s fucking disasterous.
  
  ‘”It is very exciting,” Jorgen Ouren of Statistics Norway tells The Local news website. A recent count of the city’s population showed more than 4,800 men and boys in the city are called Mohammed, beating out other popular names like Jan and Per. Although Mohammed – with various spellings – has been the favourite name for baby boys in Oslo for the past four years, this is the first time it has also topped the men’s list.’
  
  http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-news-from-elsewhere-28982803
  
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  February 4, 2018 9:33am
  - Southern Raider
    
    And head of EU population ministry has stated we can’t stop immigration so we just need to focus on changing to deal with the outcomes. What a fucken cop out
    
    19 1
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    February 4, 2018 9:50am
  - MH
    
    the Trojans are inside the horse.
    
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    February 4, 2018 11:56am
  - stephieboy
    
    kowtow , wrong ! It depends where the sample came from and it is certainly is not a national statistic as was recently shown in the UK
    
    “It’s a popular myth, and there’s good reason for it, that Muhammad is Britain’s most popular boy’s name.
    
    Except that is apparently what the data presented by the website BabyCentre has revealed this morning. These numbers were widely reported, including by the Guardian (we have subsequently updated our news story to make clear that it is a survey and not official national statistics
    
    The BabyCentre.co.uk names are simply a sample based on 56,157 members of the site who gave birth in 2014. Reporting on this seems to have overlooked that there are comprehensive statistics available from official bodies, although only up to 2013. Those figures show Muhammad was the 15th most popular boys name in England and Wales and the 52nd most popular in Scotland.
    
    https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2014/dec/01/muhammad-not-most-popular-boys-name-in-britain
    
    In the same way the name Mohamed would be a distance 15th or 50th . See how the use and abuse of stats can inflame your kind of prejudice
    
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    February 4, 2018 12:50pm
    - Maggy Wassilieff
      
      Out of date information.
      
      In 2017, Mohammed was in the top 10 of most popular boys baby names in England & Wales.
      http://fortune.com/2017/09/22/muhammad-william-popular-baby-names/
      
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      February 4, 2018 5:26pm
      - stephieboy
        
        “Muhammad replaces William in the top 10 boys’ names”
        
        Arabic moniker is by far the most popular if different spellings are accounted for,
        
        This comment gets it where you seem to fail so miserably and
        
        Pimpmypants
        
        “So that’s approximately 690,000 babies out of 696,271 that weren’t called Mohammed in any variation. Stunning news! ”
        
        http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/muhammad-boys-names-uk-list-william-replaced-a7958221.html#commentsDiv
        
        Furthermore Muslims make up 4.4% of UK’s population .Mohamed is therefor the most popular boys name in the UK ?
        
        DUH !
        
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        February 4, 2018 7:33pm
- stephieboy
  
  Southern Raider , a source might be helpful !
  
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  February 4, 2018 12:38pm
- GoVege
  
  That’s the trouble with importing massive numbers of people from primitive cultures.
  Instead of trying to assimilate, they get all stroppy and try to impose their prehistoric beliefs on their poor hosts.
  
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  February 4, 2018 4:19pm
Digmen1

Katie Hopkins (UK heroine) makes a good point about all the male muslims trying to get into Europe.

They are pleading they need safety from their own countries.
Yet they are leaving their wives, daughters and mothers and sisters in those “unsafe” countries.

It is obvious that they are just econmic illegal immigrants who want an easy life in Europe and to spread islam and sharia law.
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February 4, 2018 9:35am
- kevn
  
  Dig… plus their unsavoury lifestyle.
  
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  February 4, 2018 10:26am
  - RalphT
    
    Unsavoury for us but I suspect for them it’s heaven; away from their womenfolk and with plenty of young female infidels to harass
    
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    February 4, 2018 10:53am
    - kevn
      
      Ralph… Got a daughter? Ask her opinion. In fact, ask any woman.
      Unsavoury might be a tame comment compared.
      
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      February 4, 2018 11:17am
- kowtow
  
  “They are pleading they need safety from their own countries.”
  
  And making our countries unsafe .
  
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  February 4, 2018 4:43pm
Swifty

On meat consumption in NZ:

https://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/food-wine/100735629/the-average-kiwi-eats-20kg-less-meat-amid-concerns-over-sustainability-of-agriculture

I’m still eating quite a lot of meat these days – but do have a number of both vegetarian and fish meals in our repetoire – which we trot out regularly.

I must say I’m greatly enjoying my meat cookery more than ever these last few years. I find the quality of meat available to me quite high when you’ve sourced a good supplier (and how quickly we forget the poorer quality available just a few decades ago) and the price quite reasonable especially when I target the specials and use the deep freezer etc.

Lately experimenting with hangar steaks, skirt and flat-iron steaks (all beef), beef ribs covered and slow-roasted at 150 for four hours – and whole hogget shoulders again covered and again at 150 for four and a half hours with a final uncovered half hour at 180.

Heavenly.
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February 4, 2018 9:51am
- Digmen1
  
  The only thing unsustainable is the number of people int he world.
  
  Look at the ridiculous popualtions in India and China both nearly 1 and a half billion.
  
  And the millions in, Nigeria, Egypt, and Pakistan. All basically desert countries
  
  And Indonesia and Brazil both with 200 million.
  
  That is what is unsustainable.
  Food, water, resources, oil, job, etc
  
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  February 4, 2018 10:01am
  - Swifty
    
    I agree – we’re not dealing with the elephant in the room.
    
    12 0
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    February 4, 2018 10:05am
    - MCos
      
      Two things that cause population increases. Better healthcare which means people hang around longer. Lack of welfare for older people which means that they have more kids when they are younger so that they can be taken care of in their old age.
      
      4 0
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      February 4, 2018 12:15pm
      - Jack5
        
        If Australia closes the back door from NZ, that will push up our population, too.
        
        Many of our new Asians are using NZ as a way into Australia.
        
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        February 4, 2018 1:18pm
      - Swifty
        
        3. Religions and cultures that say you can never have too many kids. Some of which go as far as to claim that contraception is a sin and/or illegal.
        
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        February 4, 2018 2:18pm
      - Swifty
        
        Jack5 – good Philipino friends, 5 kids, have been here ten years. Just left for Aussie, Monday last week, not 6 months after becoming NZ citizens.
        
        They’re perfectly entitled to of course – but despite their denials that this was never their intention I do feel like we’ve been used a bit. I very much doubt that we’ll ever see them back here again.
        
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        February 4, 2018 2:23pm
  - suzieq
    
    Why will no politician here and elsewhere in the West tackle this issue, making it clear that (ideally) NZ welfare pays for the first two kids only (if they’ve more children, the money follows the kids, not the parents), and refugees granted asylum learn we fund two-children families only so they’ll get, say, two years’ worth of welfare for their nuclear family, but it’ll revert to standard levels (two kids only) after 24 months? Why won’t politicians confront a population policy for NZ? Afraid of fundamentalist believers of whatever faith? NZ’s beauty depends on spaciousness and lack of crowds (bar Akld of course).
    
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    February 4, 2018 1:41pm
- Southern Raider
  
  This article is just virtue signalling from some vegan journalist
  
  Who the fucks goes into a supermarket and thinks I won’t have that eye fillet because meat is unsustainable?
  
  It’s just people’s dietary habits have changed due to a wider variety of food now being available.
  
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  February 4, 2018 10:22am
- waikatogirl
  
  Love slow cooked meat. Great comfort food. Very satisfying and easy to cook if you have the time to wait. Flavours amalgamate and improve if left to be eaten the next day. Hogget, etc dishes are even more pleasant if you can remove the substantial amount of liquid fat content before consuming.
  Bon appetit! ?
  
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  February 4, 2018 10:45am
  - stephieboy
    
    waikatogirl , would you describe your self as a carnivore ?
    
    https://i.ytimg.com/vi/5myJ31m8wJk/hqdefault.jpg
    
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    February 4, 2018 12:53pm
    - waikatogirl
      
      Why? Are you a soyboy?
      
      I’m not opening your attached link. With your past disgusting links I’ll pass!
      
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      February 4, 2018 1:39pm
      - Swifty
        
        I never do.
        
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        February 4, 2018 2:24pm
      - GoVege
        
        Don’t be scared to open it, WG.
        It’s hilarious! 🙂
        
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        February 4, 2018 2:56pm
  - Swifty
    
    I totally agree about slow cooked meat waikatogirl – very warming and comforting and eating the next day is also good. I do hot hogget/mutton sandwiches by reheating the sliced meat briefly in the microwave. Works a treat.
    
    Agree too about excessive fat. After roasting shoulders I have a good half-inch to an inch of accumulated liquid in my roasting pan (a combination of the initial couple of cups of water to kick things off and the juices and rendered fat from the shoulder).
    
    A tip from my mother from 30 years ago – while I rest the shoulder I pour this liquid off in to a bowl and leave to cool for ten mins or so then put in several handfuls of ice-cubes. The fat instantly congeals around the ice cubes and you can then just remove with a slotted spoon. I then put the remaining (now fat free) juices back on the stove to reduce and strengthen in flavour and use it in preference to a thickened gravy.
    
    I recommend it to you. Most satisfactory…..
    
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    February 4, 2018 2:15pm
    - GoVege
      
      Sounds revolting to me, swifty, coming from a mammal cuzzie ‘n all.
      But at least your cuzzie had a fairly pleasant life munching grass in a nice pasture until the Big Day.
      What concerns me is that apparently our consumption of pig persons and chookies has increased.
      This would be because they are victims of “factory farming”, imprisoned in cages most of their short sad lives.
      If I had to eat meat, I’d definitely go for the cows and sheep.
      
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      February 4, 2018 3:03pm
      - Swifty
        
        I do agree that, at times, our animal welfare standards fall short – and this is something I’m not happy about.
        
        Still, it’s clear that standards in NZ have been improving over a number of years and that is a good thing.
        
        I must say too that I’ve changed myself. When getting sheepmeat from farmer mates for years I used the blade only. For the last ten years or so I’ve been insistent on a .22 used initially followed by a swift use of the knife.
        
        I sleep just that little bit better.
        
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        February 4, 2018 3:38pm
Digmen1

I can’t wait for the Italian election March 4th.
The leading candidate party says he will deport 150,000 immigrants in his first year, and then increase it.

A Danish MP says its time for Nato to start firing warnign shots at immigrant boat ships and tow them back!
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February 4, 2018 9:57am
- Inandout
  
  Luckily few Catholics hang off every word the Pope says, because he loves Muslims (except in the Vatican).
  
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  February 4, 2018 10:46am
- kowtow
  
  Italy is going down fast.
  
  10 am RNZ propaganda broadcast about an Italian shooting immigrants, triggered by the alleged murder and dismemberment of an 18 y o Eyetie drug addict girl at the hands of a Nigerian drug pusher.
  
  Lots about the shooter and shooting , practically nothing about the Nigerian.
  
  How queer.
  
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  February 4, 2018 12:47pm
  - stephieboy
    
    kowtow , at least Nigerian media have covered the sordid murder ,
    
    https://www.informationng.com/2018/02/see-photos-of-nigerian-man-accused-of-killing-and-dismembering-18-year-old-italian-girl.html
    
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    February 4, 2018 1:13pm
    - Jack5
      
      You follow the Nigerian media, StephieX?
      
      Are you scouting on behalf of internet scamsters?
      
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      February 4, 2018 1:17pm
Yvette

Winston’s statement “… action against the journalists had been amicably resolved ‘having provided the information required by Mr Peters’ legal team’.”
Tim Murphy’s tweet “He got nothing he asked for and walked away tail between legs …”
And Cameron Slater says Winston is right, “Because he [Tim Murphy] swore a couple of affidavits and the information in those affidavits is highly relevant, it’s just that the fool didn’t realise it when he swore them.”

Meanwhile, in the vacuum of Labour having yet to plant a single tree, but expanding the four definitions of poverty to several more and setting aims decades into the future, and having “robust conversations” about everything else, it seems “journalists” are concentrating on trying to change National Leadership.
• Heather du Plessis-Allan: Why Bill English should quit – and soon
• Claire Trevett: Bill English sentenced to leaving On His Own Terms
• Toby Manhire: The unstoppable ticking sound begins for Bill English and Paula Bennett
• Audrey Young: National leadership speculation reveals MPs unhappy with Steven Joyce
• Matthew Hooton discusses the machinations inside the National party to replace Bill English and his cronies

But are they all wasting their and, more importantly, our time.
Is the slow-moving but inexorable behemoth of Winston going to blow about four of National’s top team out of the water first?
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February 4, 2018 10:05am
- niggly
  
  Hooten has publicly stated Collins should be National’s leader.
  
  Hence the months/years of negativity against Bill English (and John Key previously) “quietly” undermining them both and sowing seeds of doubt on his National Radio slot and in his columns etc.
  
  So his views are tainted with an agenda in mind.
  
  Sounds familiar doesn’t it.
  
  But yet they can’t explain how Collins will win over middle NZ’ers/floating voters in order to win an election. Perhaps it’s a case of “who cares about that”, when it’s all about “right-wing purity”?
  
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  February 4, 2018 11:36am
  - Paulus
    
    For Hooten to suggest that Judith Collins take the National Party reins, along with the pushing by Whale Oil, is a kiss of death for a very competent
    Minister.
    The media have more than hate for her anyway.
    
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    February 4, 2018 1:32pm
- Piniwi
  
  But Yvette it seems the frequently repeated quote from the podgy bottle blond “no matter what we say, no matter what we do we can’t find many to believe us”. Just another Media arty smoke screen to cover up serious problems in the COL and their parties.
  
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  February 4, 2018 5:55pm
Happychappy

The Herald must be hard up for stories when they have to send David Fisher Senior Journalist at the Herald out to The fat kraut to do piece on their marriage. Who cares what and how the fat prick has sex and how much in love they are the sooner he is fitted with some orange overalls and shipped out the better as it is costing taxpayers a fortune in appeals.
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February 4, 2018 10:13am
- NK
  
  I know, right. It was lead story of the Horrid!
  
  Fisher is not a journalist. I hope the Herald goes under and he’s made redundant.
  
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  February 4, 2018 10:43am
- MCos
  
  Interesting you should mention Dotcom. A few years ago stuff was taken from his house in a raid which, as it transpired, was not entirely legal.
  However I don’t think there was a terrible amount of sympathy for the guy from the likes of Kiwiblog contributors.
  On the other hand when possibly questionable tactics are used for surveillance on another dodgy character everyone is distraught! Particularly as evidence gathered may threaten the only man that stands for a pure America!!
  
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  February 4, 2018 10:49am
  - Happychappy
    
    Maybe there was not a lot of sympathy from the majority of NZ’ers but unlike you I don’t care if you and are few other want to back the fat Kraut.
    
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    February 4, 2018 12:20pm
    - MCos
      
      I’ve certainly got no time for the chap, but then that wasn’t the the point of my comment.
      
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      February 4, 2018 2:03pm
- Digmen1
  
  I thought I was reading the Womans Weekly!
  
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  February 4, 2018 10:54am
- Yvette
  
  Dotcom, at the same time as he announced his recent wedding, also said legal steps were being take, or had been taken, to lodge a damages case against the New Zealand Government “for billions of dollars”.
  
  Was that absolute bullshit, or is the Ardern Government sitting on that, so the information can be dropped on the media the next time they want a diversion to some mis-step on muck-up they make – like Shane finding Maori have put a rahui on planting trees unless they are kauri, more boat people head for New Zealand, or Labour realises it was Chinese people who purchased John Key’s home.
  
  Where is the Dotcom legal action for damages and how many billion is it for?
  
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  February 4, 2018 11:39am
  - Paulus
    
    Why doesn’t the Minister of Immigration just sign the bloody deportation letter on his desk ?
    Too busy having a conversation I suppose.
    
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    February 4, 2018 1:35pm
kevn

der kraut has health issues supposedly and needs to live in Auckland. His preferred location was QT he said. Only a short medi flight to Dunedin or Chch. He could pay.
Who cares really so long as he ‘goes away’ asap.
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February 4, 2018 10:24am
- GazzaW
  
  Prediction. Dotcom will get a free pass a la Zaoui from the current Government.
  
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  February 4, 2018 12:38pm
  - UrbanNeocolonialist
    
    might get a deal done with general amnesty against deportation against cancelling of civvil suit against govt.
    
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    February 4, 2018 1:18pm
    - Happychappy
      
      Labour will sell their soul to have the fat kraut give them donations and who would know what Winston promised him when he visited the Mansion.
      
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      February 4, 2018 4:09pm
Manolo

I reckon crooked Hillary is the right person:
http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/371887-a-year-after-obama-dems-still-looking-for-replacement

More than a year after former President Obama left the White House, the Democratic Party is still trying to fill the void and find a leader who can take on President Trump.
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February 4, 2018 11:00am
Digmen1

A bedda goal for Jacinda rather than visiting every Marae in Northland.

Why not visit….
Every Charder school in NZ to see what education is like without unions!
And every business in NZ to see if they like your policies
And every gang headquarters to see what you are encouraging.
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February 4, 2018 11:01am
kevn

Dig… I’m with you on all that. It seems JA’s political dogma is the handicap to peeling the layers from her eyes.
For one who ‘cares’ and ‘feely good’ there are some definite shortcomings in her performance.
Dogma rules her.
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February 4, 2018 11:11am
- waikatogirl
  
  Cindy needs to read Professor Jordan Peterson’s book: ’12 Rules for Life’.
  
  It is probably too late for any change in direction as Cindy has fully embraced her ideology and no longer believes in any alternative.
  
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  February 4, 2018 1:09pm
Manolo

Just in case: those Lutherans could be dangerous.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/eton-to-put-up-anti-terror-bollards-z7bmb2hvp

Eton College will install anti-terror bollards because police have deemed the area “hostile to vehicle attacks” on tourists in the town.
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February 4, 2018 11:59am
- Jack5
  
  Not just the Lutherans. What about the Salvation Army, Manolo? Suicide euphoniums can carry a lot of explosive. B-flat IEDs.
  
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  February 4, 2018 1:15pm
VicParking

I have no problem with ensuring that, say, a female Engineer with the same qualifications and experience is paid the same as a male. However Male Rugby players bring in 50 times more Advertising Revenue and Bumbs on seats than Female Rugby players do.
Were a Industry’s success is based on Public bias or selection that they have no Control over you cannot expect them to go down the tube because of the wim of a few feminists. They seem to think that by waving glitter around they can change century’s of bias?, culture?, mindsets?, logic? or whatever you want to call it. A majority of Feminists? Do the right think but some let the side down by craving publicity over redress. Humans are slow to change. Just look at the. Catholic Church and the Muslim religion for instance. We might be a World of instant gratification, communication and reward but one has to remember that Male and Female brains are “wired” differently and 300 million years cannot be changed in a week. It will happen but only over many years. The “Genderists” however are not helping by their attempts to muddy the water between Male and Female. There are over 6500 genes that are expressed differently between us. It’s impossible to rewire these with a nip and tuck.
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February 4, 2018 12:07pm
logan0312

This whole Russia probe / Steel Dossier thing has got me thinking. If the Russians were involved at a state level why ‘release’ this information to Steele / GPS Fusion to damage a presidential candidate they supposedly wanted to become president? It doesn’t on the face of it make sense.
Unless what they actually wanted was Hillary Clinton to win.
Look at what they might have wanted. Did they want a strong person in charge who might be prepared to confront them on the international stage (Trump), or did they want Clinton who they could compromise at any time they wished?
We know that Clinton’s email server was compromised so presumably the Russians and any other interested parties would know anything they wanted about her tenure as Secretary of State and other activities. They also probably know anything they might wish to know about her political machinations and her and Bills personal lives. They know this – the truth about the Uranium One scandal, Benghazi, Donations, possible bribes from state actors etc to her foundation, the truth about Haiti monies; in short anything they might want to know to compromise her future presidency.
So if they help Clinton get elected by nobbling Trump they have a POTUS they can either blackmail or release dirt on in the future sufficient to be a major distraction during her presidency and undermine the US’s effectiveness on the international stage. That would be motivation enough to help Steel compile his fake dossier.
And so they didn’t succeed. But with the ongoing Russia probe and the continual uproar about Trumps supposed collusion, they have still gained a way of distracting the US on the international stage and limit their effectiveness.
From the Russian point of view, and assuming that Steel compiled his dossier with their help, it might look like a win-win for Russia.
All this assumes Russia did act in a state capacity to assist Steel. The other alternatives are that Steel dreamed up the contents of the dossier from his own imagination, or that his supposed sources in Russia were feeding him false dirt on Trump simply in return for the money he was paying them.
And it indicates that the MSM and Trump opponents pushing the Mueller probe are possibly acting as dupes for Russian intelligence, the very people they claim to oppose. I think its funny at a certain level.
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February 4, 2018 12:20pm
- Ed Snack
  
  I think the most obvious explanation about the Russian campaign was that it was a general one intended to undermine confidence in the US government and the electoral system.
  
  They provided almost certainly fake but salacious and newsworthy “facts” against Trump. Their Facebook and related online campaigns were deliberately divisive rather than being for one side or another – for example they promoted a BLM rally and an anti-BLM rally at the same time and same location. Their campaign against Clinton is more speculative, they may have been involved in the DNC and Podesta email hacks but despite some of the security services claiming that it was them, the evidence is actually contradictory and insiders were very likely involved in the DNC hack at least. And unlike the Trump material, the Clinton related emails were all verified accurate. So Trump is slimed with fake information, Clinton slimed with true information !
  
  I don’t think they’d have a strong preference myself. Clinton is probably easily manipulated through money and Trump is inexperienced. Trump however is much worse economically for Russia as he will certainly support fracking more than HRC and fracking is the number one reason that Oil and Gas prices are at such a low level. The Russian economy derives something like 90% of its external revenues for O & G so low prices are economically disastrous.
  
  So I reckon that if you think of the Russian aim as destabilisation that is probably the most obvious explanation. And thanks to the cupidity and corruption in the FBI/DOJ and the Democrats, they have succeeded beyond their wildest expectations.
  
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  February 4, 2018 12:46pm
  - cha
    
    Trump however is much worse economically for Russia
    
    Yeah, refusing to implement sanctions against Russia, despite an almost unanimous house vote to do so, is much worse economically for Russia.
    
    /
    
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    February 4, 2018 1:06pm
GazzaW

An update on the six brand spanking new Housing NZ apartments in our suburb as we enter the third month since their completion. There is nothing to report – they remain vacant. At this rate the first occupiers will be squatters. Where are all those families currently living in cars, garages, rackrent ‘lodges’ and familys’ spare bedrooms? HNZ either needs a kick in the arse Twyford or a crisis doesn’t really exist.

Two enormous plots of land left vacant by the removal of four or five Housing NZ 1950s homes in August remain stubbornly vacant in Onehunga. Zero signs of any redevelopment. What’s happening Minister? Delays from Auckland Council? Shortage of tradies? Shortage of building materials? Nothing new there since you took power.It’s been 100 days Phil – plenty of rhetoric but no actual progress as the KBometer will testify.

Had Nick Smith still been in charge Twyford would have been haranging him daily.
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February 4, 2018 12:28pm
- KiWombat
  
  Haven’t you heard? The crisis is over – according to MSM.
  
  I’ve been advertising items for $1 on Trade Me for those living in poverdy – no takers though !
  
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  February 4, 2018 12:51pm
- Gravelroad
  
  Must admit that I am at a loss to understand the silence from the National Party on a lot of subjects, Gazza.
  There’s more information and spirited debate on here than is coming out from National.
  What about all the voters who supported you?
  Blame the media is the answer I suppose.
  
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  February 4, 2018 1:01pm
  - waikatogirl
    
    Simon Bridges was making noise in Tauranga yesterday about continuing the building of the extension of the existing motorway from the southern side of Cambridge through to the Kaimai ranges. The heavy traffic on this road makes extending the motorway necessary.
    
    Question: where is the promised white elephant fast train service from Auckland to Tauranga and Hamilton promised during the election by Cindy herself?
    
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    February 4, 2018 1:20pm
    - sooty
      
      Shosh! Taxida busy at waitangi?
      
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      February 4, 2018 3:51pm
      - Piniwi
        
        Right sooty but it might be better if her stay is like being in Los Vegas. What happens wangletangle stays in wangletangle. There will be plenty of wangling we can be sure of that.
        
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        February 4, 2018 6:05pm
    - fernglas
      
      Wait a couple of years and Tesla/Google will have us all doing 150kph 2 metres apart in electric cars on the existing goat track; why waste money on rail when it is just sooooo… last millennium.
      
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      February 4, 2018 5:00pm
- KiWombat
  
  Twitford’s out to lunch – call him when he arrives at the office
  
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  February 4, 2018 1:06pm
lifesgood

In the SST today:
“Former Milford track guide said it was important to protect NZ’s natural resources ” There are now thousands of NZers now living in poverty who rely on foraging to survive.”
I call BS on that. What a load of old cobblers. How many of the thousands in NZ dying of starvation can even be bothered planting a few veggies or growing fruit trees etc? I can’t see them heading out on the weekend to forage.
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February 4, 2018 12:44pm
- Jack5
  
  Foraging to survive? How come so many of them are obese?
  
  The Sunday papers in their death throes are incoherent, rambling, irrational. It’s sad really. Not the way they should be remembered.
  
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  February 4, 2018 1:09pm
- Gravelroad
  
  Unless you really know what you are doing, foraging can be dangerous. Not all “foodstuffs” you find growing wild are edible. Some are poisonous.
  Different if you are “foraging” in other people’s gardens though – taking fruit and vegetables grown by somebody.
  There is a fine line between foraging and thieving.
  
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  February 4, 2018 1:15pm
- holysheet
  
  Nah they are getting their “weed”s’ confused with other naturally grown stuff.
  
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  February 4, 2018 1:21pm
- GazzaW
  
  I call BS on that too. I recall the late ’40s and early ’50s in the UK and although there was little poverty the food shortages were extremely severe and stringent rationing was in force. This was largely due to the bulk of the British merchant fleet sitting on the floor of the Atlantic and a lack of sterling funds with which to buy and import food.
  
  We foraged not from dumpster bins or from food banks (neither existed then) but rather mushrooms, berries or nuts. My parents very efficiently cultivated a tiny section and we had a hutchful of rabbits. Mum was highly proficient in the kitchen and could convert ‘off ration’ food such as whale or horse meat into savoury stews or the occasional pig’s head into brawn. My parents were brought up in the Depression and had learned real survival skill as a matter of necessity. Were they alive today they would be horrified at the lack of life skills present in those with their hands permanently held out and calling for more.
  
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  February 4, 2018 1:25pm
  - Paulus
    
    Agreed – I asked for a few lunchtime slices of brawn the other day in my local Supermarket and the girl looked daggers at me and said did I know it was made from pigs head – I said yea, just like my mum made it over 60 years ago, during and after the War.
    
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    February 4, 2018 1:42pm
    - waikatogirl
      
      Recently we received some beautiful Golden Queen peaches so I had to set about preserving them before they went off. Too good to just let rot. A lot of work but worth the effort.
      
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      February 4, 2018 1:51pm
      - wiseowl
        
        They wont be Golden Queens wg but one of the early Tatura copies.
        Real Golden Queens ready late Feb just after wonderful Blackboys.
        
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        February 4, 2018 5:09pm
    - Swifty
      
      Nothing wrong with a few pieces of brawn.
      
      Puts hair on your chest.
      
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      February 4, 2018 3:53pm
      - GazzaW
        
        ……and bristles on your stomach lining.
        
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        February 4, 2018 8:02pm
- Felt
  
  Why don’t they plant apple trees? They can claim the tree in their “new planting program” and reduce poverdy at the same time!
  
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  February 4, 2018 1:41pm
- kowtow
  
  Forage ?
  
  That lot don’t go into the great outdoors to forage.
  
  They break in other people’s doors to pillage.
  
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  February 4, 2018 4:47pm
- Piniwi
  
  Right lifesgood but would we really want a bunch of natives roaming around in the scrub with assault rifles on “foraging”? Hard enough to get them off the couch to forage in the fridge when they have so many kids to get some beers across the room. Ask the Jones boy.
  
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  February 4, 2018 6:11pm
niggly

Fairfax headline: “Marama Davidson announces run Green Party co-leader”

“I’ve decided to stand for Co-leader of the Green Party because I am the best placed to build a strong, cohesive and diverse movement to bring about transformative social, environmental and economic change,” she said.

Bwhahahaha – more rubbish cliche slogans and zero details on how she will be able to “build a strong, cohesive and diverse movement to bring about transformative social, environmental and economic change”.

Anyway I think the Greens have done the right thing by appointing* a MeTu copy-cat clone as their co-leader … that will further endear them with middle NZ voters /not!

Plus the bonus is, the COL will become increasingly strained as mild-mannered James Shaw has to stand-aside at times and let Davidson front/scare off the public.

If Labour were concerned about MeTu’s antics last year, well looks like it’s going to re-ignite and go on and on for … years!

Nevermind the Labour MP’s, it’s enough to drive Winnie & NZF back to drink! Good one Winnie & NZF – surely you could see this coming?!

Looks like the dynamics of the COL has taken a turn for the worst! Their first 100 days of happiness and cohesion will soon become a distant memory! Jacinda & Labour’s fairytale is now over!

(*It’s a done deal, environmentalist Logie said she wouldn’t run if activist Davidson runs, and the moderate Genter doesn’t have a chance now that the Green activist base will swing behind their own kind)!

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/101159546/marama-davidson-announces-run-green-party-coleader
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February 4, 2018 1:09pm
- holysheet
  
  it’s enough to drive Winnie & NZF back to drink!
  
  When did they stop??
  I must have missed that announcement.
  
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  February 4, 2018 1:18pm
  - sooty
    
    But they allready have a nut less co leader. Why do they want another one?
    
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    February 4, 2018 3:47pm
- KevOB
  
  Being an activist, 2018 style, is incompatible with being in the House of Representatives. That takes competence and attention to affairs of state.
  
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  February 4, 2018 5:52pm
  - Awww C-mon
    
    Can you send that memo to Golriz? Ahh actually, too late
    
    2 0
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    February 4, 2018 8:06pm
- Piniwi
  
  But niggly think of the boxes that will be ticked as (A) seems more like a female than most other alternatives (B) a sunshine sister and has established some creds as a protesting activist.
  
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  February 4, 2018 6:19pm
Komata

LIG

Re: ‘I can’t see them heading out on the weekend to forage’.

Nor can I, since to do so requires a car, which requires a warrant, which requires a rego, which requires savings which requires money which (although it is forthcoming from a grateful government), is already earmarked for use on the important things of like like cigs, beer, a flutter and drugs etc; the things always take priority over the unimportant things as food and clothing and medical visits, the purchase of which requires a car, which …

Oh, look, we’ve gone around in a circle – but at least we now have the reasons why we ‘…Can’t see them heading out on the weekend to forage’.

(I thought you might like to know…)
9 1
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February 4, 2018 1:10pm
- Piniwi
  
  Ha ha Komata what warrant? What rego? That cost has been eliminated as they get a free pass from the law on those. Arrest warrants are more likely to be more common. But credit where credit is due since the laws of supply demand sees their higher P demands have got the prices down. They prefer to take a trip without leaving the couch/floor.
  
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  February 4, 2018 6:25pm
cmm

St Obama might come to NZ…

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/101157938/air-new-zealand-tipped-to-host-former-us-president-obama-on-new-zealand-visit

I wonder if Cindy will offer him sanctuary?
15 4
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February 4, 2018 1:29pm
- holysheet
  
  I doubt it. He is John keys golfing buddy, so his time here will be spent out on the golf course at Matauri Bay or Napier. After all that’s how he spent most of his presidency.
  (How come a black man plays with white mans balls)
  
  10 4
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  February 4, 2018 1:55pm
  - stephieboy
    
    holysheet ,
    
    “after all that’s how he spent most of his presidency.”
    
    Unlike of course your chump Trump ?
    
    3 23
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    February 4, 2018 2:46pm
- cmm
  
  Some of the latest FISA shitstorm could splatter on the Saint’s face.
  
  He might need somewhere to hide away rather than join Kim Dotcom in orange.
  
  8 3
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  February 4, 2018 2:45pm
  - stephieboy
    
    cmm,
    
    “Some of the latest FISA shitstorm could splatter on the Saint’s face “ ?
    
    Yes, a very big hugemangous “ could “ !
    
    4 20
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    February 4, 2018 2:48pm
    - softail 1450
      
      OH GOD ,streppieboy J F O .
      
      17 2
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      February 4, 2018 3:03pm
Viking2

Callaghan Innovation is a government research and development agency, which supports entrepreneurial businesses, start-ups and technological firms.

In 2017, Callaghan employed 386 staff – 62 in Auckland, 296 in Wellington, and 28 in Christchurch, according to its annual report.

Callaghan received $236m of taxpayer funding in the last financial year. Of this, $149.5m was used on grants to businesses.

Callaghan spends $43m on wages and salaries.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/101158437/callaghan-innovation-spent-almost-3m-on-entertainment-accommodation-airfares-in-2016?cid=facebook.post.101158437

So for an outfit that hands out funds it spent a shit load on entertaining, WHY, and a shit load on Wages and travel, again WHY.

Time to shut this down and stop bleeding the poor old taxpayer.
Thanks National.

They spent almost $3m on entertainment, accommodation, airfares in 2016.
fuck that’s some traveling and eating. Plenty of fat bastards among that lot.
17 2
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February 4, 2018 2:04pm
- cmm
  
  Although I work in an industry that potentially sucks on the tqaxpayer’s tit via Callaghan I really, really, do not like:
  1) The government extracting tax and funding start ups – many of which are just overhyped hobbies.
  2) The way Callaghan goes about it.
  
  If they are handing out money they do not need expensive waterfront offices next to the Saudi Embassy. All they need is a WINZ style office up some shitty back alley.
  
  Indications are that start ups actually can do much better with a “built in a garage” culture rather than a massively funded operation. The reason for that is when you’re doing stuff part time and on a limited budget you really focus on what is important. Once you get a whole lot of funding your focus changes to what will get the funding rather than actually getting results with the product.
  
  I have some experience of this having moonlighted as a software developer. Software I developed on a desk in the corner of the lounge ended up generating approx $2M in revenue for myself and associates (+ at least 50x that for customers) and has been used in billions of devices worldwide.
  
  If I’d had the hand outs I doubt it would have been such a success.
  
  17 1
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  February 4, 2018 2:42pm
  - Harriet
    
    Or as Bob Jones once said with regards to public servants, public money and an idea “It takes on a life of it’s own.”
    
    9 2
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    February 4, 2018 3:12pm
  - waikatogirl
    
    More satisfying when you succeed all off your own hard work.
    
    5 1
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    February 4, 2018 6:49pm
- UrbanNeocolonialist
  
  Jesus that’s appalling. Egregious troughing, $250k/year in-house cost per employee, and a head count 10x too high. A few suitably commercially experienced grey-beards can make funding decisions quickly without so much wasted effort on arse covering documents and reports, and a few bean counters can keep track all without wasting everyone’s time and money – the same way angels and VCs work.
  
  People I know say any money sourced from Callaghan is far too expensive in time spent massaging applications and reporting and ongoing requirements for using universities etc to be worth it (eg I know of an example where an applying company would have been required to pay a uni 30k for some instrumentation work that would have taken months to happen, they turned their back on Callaghan and instead got a contractor to do it in a few days for $3k).
  
  Universities love the Callaghan approach because they can always win out on low probability application processes due to their effectively zero cost labour for writing such applications. But it is not delivering best value for NZ
  
  10 1
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  February 4, 2018 3:11pm
- Manolo
  
  Further proof that there is not much light between Labour lite and the current lot.
  
  8 1
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  February 4, 2018 4:40pm
softail 1450

LOL, I wonder if that know it all ztev has seen the latest MSM figures in the USA that have trump level pegging with obama at the same time in their presidency.
come on ztev just a couple days ago you were raving on about how bad trumps ratings were,man up fool and admit you cocked that up.
10 2
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February 4, 2018 2:49pm
- sooty
  
  There’s down tick, so ztev has been thru allready
  
  10 2
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  February 4, 2018 3:42pm
  - Happychappy
    
    He hasn’t been here for a couple of days so I wonder if he’s copped a ban.
    
    6 1
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    February 4, 2018 4:14pm
    - stigie
      
      Wouldn’t be surprised if RC received a ban after yesterdays antics or was it kea..?
      
      12 0
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      February 4, 2018 4:39pm
      - thedavincimode
        
        He did stigie. Off to the naughty corner. Spectacular melt down by Ballsack though. Can’t believe he let kea sucker him like that. There were any number of appropriate responses to kea, one of which would have still secured the yellow card. Unfortunately Ballsack went full retard and was last seen disappearing into orbit. Disappointing, but I’m giving him the benefit of the doubt and putting it down to emotional exhaustion after being up all night with the memo release and ensuing hilarity. He’ll hopefully be stronger for this.
        
        14 1
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        February 4, 2018 5:37pm
      - mikenmild
        
        Ah, the ‘memo release’. Is that some new euphemism we should be aware of?
        
        4 6
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        February 4, 2018 7:21pm
    - GazzaW
      
      ztev’s here.
      
      Isn’t he, Milhous?
      
      0 0
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      February 4, 2018 10:28pm
Digmen1

And all Obama did (after he saved Detroit) was bring in his Obamacare.

Trump has done more in one year!
13 4
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February 4, 2018 2:59pm
- softail 1450
  
  Digmen1,,,, yeah you’re right but ztev and streppieboy would rather eat razor blades than admit to that.
  
  10 3
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  February 4, 2018 3:11pm
- stephieboy
  
  Digmen1 , like giving tax cuts for the middle class and making them pay more for imports via tariffs .
  
  None for the President’s rust belt constituency .
  
  Yes ?
  
  3 14
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  February 4, 2018 4:06pm
  - Manolo
    
    Let go, stephieboy. Trump defeated your Hillary. Period.
    
    11 2
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    February 4, 2018 4:37pm
    - thedavincimode
      
      If he really cared Manolo, he’d be writing to hillary sending her a toothbrush and suggesting she keeps it handy at all times.
      
      6 2
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      February 4, 2018 5:41pm
Digmen1

Gee i just got back from shopping.
People do not need to go to Kaikoura any more.

There are plenty of female whales walking round our shopping centres. It really is disgusting.

And lots of middle aged white guys with bug tummy’s sticking out, and they seem proud of out.

People need to eat less, and have some pride in their appearance.
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February 4, 2018 3:01pm
- Swifty
  
  Hit Youtube and look up footage of NZers in the 60s and 70s.
  
  It is startling how fat NZers have got in such a short space of time.
  
  12 0
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  February 4, 2018 3:48pm
  - Harriet
    
    And their teeth were whiter also. You see both these facts in music videos from the 60s and 70s.
    
    Albeit it is a black and white picture and they are American :
    
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXIjE_gDw94
    
    1 1
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    February 4, 2018 4:06pm
  - Digmen1
    
    Its the same around most of the world.
    
    I watch some Philipines tv and old stuff and years ago all the police and army guys were slim.
    Now they all are solid looking. Not fat, but solid.
    
    4 0
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    February 4, 2018 5:25pm
  - Digmen1
    
    Yes I have done some scientific research… (not really)
    But I would say that one third of kiwis are obese.
    One third are over weight and one third are normal
    
    5 0
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    February 4, 2018 5:27pm
  - fernglas
    
    You are dead right, Swifty. I was much skinnier in the 60’s and 70’s than I am now. Although 40-50 years to get this way doesn’t seem such a short space of time.
    
    4 0
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    February 4, 2018 5:28pm
    - Tauhei Notts
      
      I got married in 1978. That was 23 kilogrammes ago.
      
      10 1
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      February 4, 2018 5:58pm
      - Johnboy
        
        I got hitched in 1971. That was 30 kg ago. 🙂
        
        9 2
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        February 4, 2018 6:33pm
      - nasska
        
        1970 for me. Weight hasn’t changed much except that it now resides around my gut instead of my shoulders. 🙂
        
        10 2
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        February 4, 2018 7:17pm
      - Johnboy
        
        I don’t mind putting on the weight so much as at least 5kg of it’s in my cock! 🙂
        
        6 3
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        February 4, 2018 7:20pm
      - nasska
        
        I don’t know how to break it to you gently JB but you’re supposed to discard the condom after coitus. 🙂
        
        9 1
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        February 4, 2018 7:26pm
      - Johnboy
        
        I tried to insist on that nasska but she claims it makes her gag! 🙂
        
        2 1
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        February 4, 2018 7:31pm
      - stigie
        
        I can see why Penny was reluctant now !~
        
        5 0
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        February 4, 2018 8:05pm
      - Awww C-mon
        
        Ya old buggers!
        
        I was born in 74, 100kg ago ??
        
        3 2
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        February 4, 2018 8:25pm
      - stigie
        
        Iv’e always told Dad you were a big bugger Awww, i think he may have seen the light..?
        
        3 0
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        February 4, 2018 8:36pm
  - thedavincimode
    
    It’s because of child poverdy and unaffordable housing Swifty.
    
    Bring back the flagon, the six o’clock swill and the 1/4 acre paradise I say! Plus the boilermakers of course .. oh, oops …
    
    11 1
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    February 4, 2018 5:39pm
    - UrbanNeocolonialist
      
      And all the push lawnmowers, rugby, cricket and carless days.
      
      9 1
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      February 4, 2018 6:16pm
- Piniwi
  
  True Digmen1 but it even more interesting at any shopping mall eatery area. The size of the sun tan clans in the queues are massive, longer with much less numbers and much slower from so many big orders.
  
  7 2
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  February 4, 2018 6:35pm
  - waikatogirl
    
    Can I upsize that for you? ?
    
    6 1
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    February 4, 2018 7:01pm
Digmen1

Who do they think they are?
The Turkish invasion of Afrin is really terrible.
Just because there are Kurds there does not mean they have been attacking Turkey in Turkey!

Nato should really put some pressure on Turkey and make them stop now.

Not only that it has taken them ten days to invade a very small area about the size of Lake Taupo.

I like the kurds and just wish they were given a homeland in part of Turkey, Syria, Iraq and Iran.
7 1
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February 4, 2018 3:19pm
VicParking

I see the failing newspaper is showing a banner saying its the Website of the year. If its so hot why does it not work with an Pencil or Evan with a ginger on touch screens. Website of the year 2012.
2 1
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February 4, 2018 5:28pm
fernglas

“…..with an Pencil or Evan with a ginger”? VP, you have outdone yourself.
2 0
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February 4, 2018 5:31pm
Johnboy

https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/101158059/commuter-trains-at-heightened-risk-of-collisions-near-wellington-railway-station
It’ll all be OK and fixed once we get proper unionised chaps driving the crappy trains! 🙂
11 2
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February 4, 2018 6:37pm
- MrLovebucket
  
  Crying out for driverless trains if you ask me.
  
  And don’t get me started on the archaic ticketing system. Cash only for a paper ticket from a conductor.
  
  2 0
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  February 4, 2018 8:20pm
Manolo

stephieboy is saving up to buy a truckload of nappies:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11987689

Former US President Barack Obama will finally go ahead with his promise to visit New Zealand on a trip in March.

It is understood the contract is due to be finalised and the visit announced next week.

The reason for the visit is unknown but there has been speculation Air NZ is about to launch a new route to the United States, likely Chicago which is Obama’s home town.
3 1
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February 4, 2018 8:07pm
- skyblue
  
  Don’t need that corrupt coon in NZ.
  
  5 6
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  February 4, 2018 8:26pm
  - fernglas
    
    Don’t use the c… word, you racist c…
    
    4 0
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    February 4, 2018 9:20pm
    - stephieboy
      
      Says a lot about skylbue’s severely limited cranial capabilities .
      
      A lot of KB and whale oil alt righters will be feeling exactly like him.
      
      Out there in the real world they count for nothing.Lunatic fringe stuff
      
      Ignore !
      
      1 11
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      February 4, 2018 9:24pm
      - Digmen1
        
        What is an Alt Righter?
        
        If you mean extreme right wing, then you need to look at what is causing the rise of it.
        
        Look at the attempted drive by in London, and the one just yesterday in Italy.
        
        European people are just sick of the black and muslim invasion. And the fact that their governments do not listen to the majority.
        
        (Can I use the word black?)
        
        5 1
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        February 4, 2018 9:56pm
      - stephieboy
        
        Digmen1 , your given the game a way. Alt right characteristic include ,
        
        1 A persuasive fear and hatred of Islam and their followers
        
        2 White identity and nationalistic politics and attitudes are prominent feeling submerged by aa alleged tidal wave of non white refugees and the myth of Muslim etc demographic time bombs .
        Includes s a real dislike and prejudice towards of Africans ( blacks if you will ) and their so called “ shitholes “
        
        3 , Usually are followers and supporters of Donald Trump who mirror in many of their prejudices and fears
        
        4 , There is also a rich vein of anti semitism that many alt righters tap into as was seen in the 1916 Presedential election campaign . This includes the demonisation of Billionaire and jew George Soros . And those Jews who seem to be disproportionately among the elites .
        
        1 8
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        February 4, 2018 10:11pm
      - GazzaW
        
        I don’t think too many of us were around for the 1916 Presidential election stephieboy. Pray tell what the anti-Semitism was all about in those dark old days.
        
        3 0
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        February 4, 2018 10:44pm
Rodney Randall

https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/community-organisations-chosen-sponsor-refugees-new-zealand

“Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway has today announced the four community-based organisations who will be the first in New Zealand to sponsor refugees planned to arrive here by June 2018 under a ground-breaking new approach.
Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand (Wellington), Gleniti Baptist Church (Timaru), South West Baptist Church (Christchurch) and the Society of St Vincent de Paul (Nelson) have been chosen by Immigration New Zealand (INZ) to become approved sponsors for the pilot of the Community Organisation Refugee Sponsorship Category.”

“The four organisations will help 25 refugees to settle into their communities, the services they will provide will include: the provision of furnished housing, helping them navigate their community and the services they need (such as enrolling in GPs and schooling), English language classes, and support towards paid employment and self-sufficiency.”

We have an escalating homeless problem in Christchurch.

Two homeless people (mother and daughter) recently made a deputation to the C.C.C. and pointed out that they were refused a shower by the Salvation Army.

The Salvation army has a multi million dollar Citadel.

We can’t even look after our own.
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February 4, 2018 9:49pm
- Digmen1
  
  Sounds great.
  I think I’ll become a refugee, you get all that free stuff.
  
  3 0
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  February 4, 2018 9:51pm
- Rodney Randall
  
  How much funding (tax payer money) do the churches receive from the Labour Government to house Syrians under this ‘pilot’ scheme?
  
  2 0
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  February 4, 2018 9:55pm
Rodney Randall

Response on South West Baptist Church Faccebook Page:

“Great that we can be involved and that the Government is making it possible. To help us in the integration perhaps there are things we can learn from NZ history of Colonisation that will help us avoid making the same mistakes again. This recent comment by The Freedom Diaries about the state of Maori/ Pakeha changing relationships may have some pointers for us. Extract: “The angels who have stood over the colonised nations since long before colonisation have made themselves heard, a collective voice. You can see it all over the world Mark. The counsel of the angels has been heard. Their wish is my command. Peace, settlement, a turning of hearts, white to black, brown, yellow and red, and all colours growing warmer in forgiveness toward white. A time of great friendship.” – Phil Teague
South west Baptist church.

These Baptists are nothing more than apologists who feel the need to be wracked with guilt about any given perceived wrong-doing regardless of fault and often fact. Naive handwringers who see dollar signs
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February 4, 2018 10:04pm
- stephieboy
  
  Hopefully our keyboard warriors will get off their butts for once and do something practical in protest against and stop this !?
  
  0 8
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  February 4, 2018 10:15pm
  - Rodney Randall
    
    Hey Steph. How are things up your way?
    
    2 0
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    February 4, 2018 10:19pm
- Rodney Randall
  
  https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/347954/it-s-another-door-for-people-to-come-through
  
  “Amnesty International campaigns director Meg de Ronde said humanitarian needs should be at the heart of the criteria, with no discrimination against refugees because of their age, language ability and professional skills.”
  
  “Immigration New Zealand refugee division national manager Andrew Lockhart said the groups taking part were all strong organisations with dedicated people ready to do work on the ground.
  
  He said some groups may nominate refugees they have connections to, and staff would be visiting Lebanon and Beirut in March to identify other suitable candidates, who would likely be from Syria.”
  
  Does NZ house presecuted Christians?
  
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  February 4, 2018 10:16pm
  - stephieboy
    
    Rodney Randall , it would be a good idea if we all lobbied for this, sending emails to the minister of immigration .
    
    We already have a sizeable Christian presence from Iraq like here ,
    
    https://www.facebook.com/stpetersnz/
    
    and ,
    
    http://www.spoke.net.nz/chaldean/NewsRoom/English_Archives_2011/English_Archives_2011_February/English_Archives_2011_February_17.aspx
    
    1 7
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    February 4, 2018 10:23pm
    - Rodney Randall
      
      https://www.nzcatholic.org.nz/2017/03/20/iraqs-christian-refugees-face-double-discrimination/
      
      In January this year an alliance of 16 UK-based agencies working with refugees issued a major report declaring that Christians are not being supported by the international donor institutions and the UNHCR, and are having to rely on churches that are trying to run their own aid programmes with limited funds.
      
      “All the NGOs involved in this report state that the vast majority of Christians and other [non-Muslim] ‘minorities’ avoid UNHCR camps and facilities because of continuing discrimination and persecution,” the report said, adding: “It is utterly unacceptable that a place of sanctuary should be a place of fear that repels those it is designed to save and protect.”
      
      However, the report said those who remain outside UNHCR camps “have fared . . . unequally in the allocation of international aid, funding, political support, media attention, and asylum placements”.
      
      The 88-page report, published by World Watch Monitor (an agency which “reports the story of Christians around the world under pressure for their faith”) said all the NGOs involved in the report stated that the vast majority of Christians and other “minorities” avoid UNHCR camps and facilities because of continuing discrimination and persecution, so they do not qualify to receive aid.
      
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      February 4, 2018 10:47pm
Rodney Randall

Creed

Noting that it is UNHCR policy not to record refugees’ religious affiliation, the agencies urged the UNHCR to scrap its “need not creed” approach and acknowledge the particular experiences of minorities such as Christians or Yazidis.

They also urged the UNHCR to employ more nonMuslim registration and security staff, and translators, to reduce discrimination against non-Muslims.

The report contained accounts of Christian refugees approaching UNHCR and being referred to local churches rather than being processed in the same way as other applicants.

In addition, it said some NGOs which are assisting Christians to leave the region have encountered opposition from the UNHCR either through unnecessary delays or blocked applications.

The report also warned that Christians are being excluded from the National Settlement plan being put together by Iraq and other regional powers and presented to the United Nations, further eroding the likelihood of their return once Islamic State has been militarily defeated there.

What the UK agencies reported about UNHCR camps was reiterated in an article by Samuel Tadros on the ABC [Australia] Religion and Ethics website on January 31, 2017.
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February 4, 2018 10:54pm
Rodney Randall

The UK-based Barnabas Fund, an international, interdenominational agency supporting persecuted Christians, has frequently raised concerns about discrimination against Christian refugees fleeing genocide.

In a January 12, 2017, statement, it said: “Christians who have fled Iraq and Syria to nearby countries are largely ignored by the UN, with 97–99 per cent of those refugees selected for resettlement in the UK and USA being Muslims. Meanwhile those Christians who make it on their own to European countries such as Greece, Germany and Sweden are placed in refugee shelters where many are targeted by Islamists and are subjected to death threats and physical violence. At the moment there is little sign that Western countries will significantly alter their policies in either respect.”

In an earlier statement (December 22, 2016), the Barnabas Fund accused the UNHCR of “institutional discrimination” in how it operates on the ground.

It said this was shown by the fact that the proportion of Christians among Syrian refugees being resettled had fallen to less than 1 per cent in both the UK and the US, despite that fact that prior to the civil war Christians made up around 10 per cent of Syria’s population.
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February 4, 2018 10:59pm
Jack5

Joke from an article in the Telegraph about right-wing humour:

How many social workers does it take to change a light bulb?

None. They just form a support group called “coping with darkness”.
1 0
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February 4, 2018 11:34pm
oob

Influx of Chinese capital into NZ, with a particular focus upon infrastructure projects. The second-largest bank in the world.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11986914
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February 5, 2018 12:45am

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NZCPR
Pretty (il)legal
Croaking Cassandra
Where are the food carts?
Offsetting Behaviour
Tory Whanau may have to sell Wellington mayoralty to make ends meet
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The Accidental Engagement
Imperator Fish
Legal Beagle: Election '23: The Special Votes
Public Address
Making this movie might have been a mistake
Liam Hehir
Why I am retiring from political blogging
Kiwi FireWalker
Angie Warren-Clark: Meet the Newbies
Dan Moskovitz

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