.
.
Today’s Daily Blog Watch Round-Up of matters that have attracted the attention, assessments, and articulations of this country’s leading bloggers…
NZ Left Blogosphere
From the Moral Shepherd of the Left , Chris Trotter on Bowalley Road posits that The End Of Merlin: Or, Was Dunne Done-in? by a mixture of ‘magic’ and the Dark Art of Politics… with another Master Magician lurking in the background?
Nah. It was a mid-life thang. Jane Clifton had it right when she wrote about Peter Dunne’s gobsmacking fall from grace in The Listener.
The oldest story in the Book of Humanity. End of.
Or is it?
Danyl on The Dim Post advises us to Get ready to pinch the hell out of the bridge of your nose, as he comments on Chris Trotter’s blogpost.
It’s worth looking at Clare Curran’s blogpost again on Red Alert: Too close for comfort: is the GCSB spying on us?
With Dear Leader’s recent reassurance that New Zealanders are not being spied on by the Prism system – what have we got to fear? After all, Key is a man of honesty and integrity…
Marty on mars2earth blogs about underreported struggles 74, and reports on indiginous peoples’ struggles around the world. Struggles which in many cases are successful!
On Frogblog, Gareth Hughes presents an infographic from – the World Bank of all places! Check out Sustainable energy for all. Is this the greening of the World Bank? It had to be inevitable, I guess…
It’s an interesting infographic. These things are supposed to be simplified versions of complex ideas. But even the infographic becomes complex as it tries to present information to the reader. Still worth a look, though.
On Maui Street, ENROL! saying,
“If you do one thing this year, enrol or switch to the Maori roll. I can’t stress it enough – enrol on or switch to the Maori roll. Do it. Do it now.
Every patriotic Maori should be on the Maori roll. ”
You heard the man – do it! Support the maori roll before some right wing, racist ACT/National government abolishes the seats!
Auckland: Better housing for workers needed demands Fightback! Daphne Lawless writes,
“...many more people will live in apartments, terraced houses, and other small dwellings.
Right-wing politicians and “residents’ associations” from the leafy suburbs such as St Heliers and Milford are up in arms about these proposals. They’ve been yelling about the danger of “slums” about how higher-density living is “not the Kiwi way”, and refusing to let “their suburbs” change.”
Daphne writes a damning critique of the middle classes who had their homes destroyed for the new motorways, for the benefit of others. Now those same vocal self-interested groups are wanting their patch preserved?
Gareth on Hot Topic blogs about his interview with Jim Renwick on Antarctic sea ice, SAM and ozone. Read how climate change continues to affect New Zealand.
Scott on Imperator Fish shows us A day in the life of Peter Dunne. Everything suddenly falls into place…
On The Pundit, there are two pieces on the flouridation issue,
-
It’s Something in the Water, sez Ian Hassall, who writes a lengthy, well-reasoned critique of the anti-flouro movement. Unfortunately, the anti-flouro faction is not one that relies on reasoned debate. Theirs is more of an emotion-laden argument firmly rooted in anti-science prejudice. Think Climate Change deniers with water added.
-
What the daft fluoride decision says about a Kiwi culture shift writes Tim Watkin, who asks,
“Hamilton councillors are just the latest folk to fall prey to fear-raising arguments against ‘mass medication’ and in favour of individual choice, while ignoring science. What’s going on? ”
Hmm, I get the feeling we’re on the verge of a “moral panic”, similar to the “satanic ritual abuse” hysteria of the early 1990s…
See also the Blogpost of the Day.
There’s some Frankly Speaking by Frank Macskasy on 10 June – Issues of Interest and 11 June – Issues of Interest. Everything from testing herbal “highs” on animals to Kim Hill roasting John “Brain Fade” Key on Radio NZ’s Morning report. Also check out his write up on something called the “New Zealand Initiative”.
The Jackal writes about Peter Dunne’s Forced exit destabilises government – and tears strips off the NZ Herald Columnist/National Mouthpiece for presenting unsupported guesswork as fact, and his blantant contradictions. Frank Macskasy has written along the same line in his Daily Blog post, Sparks fly with yet more shocking right wing nuttery.
In Armstrong’s rush to kiss Key’s backside, he seems to be less and less concerned at maintaining any pretence at non-partisanship.
As Frank writes, it’s surprising that Armstrong’s salary is still paid by The Herald, and not the National Party.
The Civilian is outstanding this evening…
- Queen summons knights to go on quest for Holy Grail – Queen Elizabeth II of Britain has summoned her entire order of knights to Buckingham Palace in England this week, to assign them the task of going on a quest to find the ancient relic known as the Holy Grail.
-
National Standards results show improvement in Hekia Parata’s reading, writing and maths – The National Government is winning praise this afternoon after its annual National Standards results showed a vast improvement in the reading, writing and maths ability of Education Minister Hekia Parata.
-
‘The men in grey suits tell me nothing,’ says Key – Prime Minister John Key has today denied that the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) has been circumventing New Zealand law by accessing data from international spy network PRISM, though says if they did, he wouldn’t know, because “the men in grey suits tell me nothing.”
While on a slightly less satirical (?) note, The Standard presents…
- Hooton spouting nonsense – Matthew Hooton is spinning like mad to talk up the economy. Unfortunately his spin sometimes bends the truth beyond breaking point, and there were three examples of that yesterday. On RNZ Hooton claimed that NZ had the lowest (or one of the lowest) youth unemployment rates in the OECD, and that the fire at will (90 day probation) law had been responsible for a significant fall in youth unemployment (my links are to secondary sources, if anyone knows where the original audio is please link in comments). Wrong and wrong
- The corruption of democracy – writes,The governance of the five nations linked by the Five Eyes Echelon spy network share many similarities in the ways the shining ideal of democracy are consistently being undermined. In each country, the details are a little different, but they follow the same pattern. Of the five countries, the US wields the most power with the UK being second-in-command, while Australia, Canada and New Zealand have the least leverage to maintain their own interests and independence.
- Nothing moderate about National’s employment changes – Rachel Mackintosh, Director of Organising for the EPMU, writes, The National government’s changes to employment law will build on what we already have – the most unequal society we have had since the first Labour government turned things around in the 1930s. These laws will drive wages down and increase insecurity and poverty in this country. There is nothing “moderate” about pushing policy that increases the power of the powerful and reduces the power of those dependent on them for a living.
- Whistleblowers and services to journalism – writes, Two
whistleblowersleakers are in the news right now, both focused on the US-led surveillance society, operating in the interests of corporate power. One is a true whistleblower, the other has created as much confusion as enlightenment. And today they are brought into focus by some journalists who have done a major service over time. Kim Hill took it to John Key this morning on RNZ’s Morning Report.
.
On The Daily Blog
Marama Davidson for Green Party – campaign update, by Marama Davidson,
People know I claim my powerbase as that of being a mother. There is no clearer irony than the one which separates me from my children for five weeks while I speak up for their better future.
Imagine if we had many more more like Marama, in Parliament, helping to guide our country. What a fantastic nation we’d have. (And neo-liberals and Libertarians could be supported to migrate to Somalia, planet Earth’s closest libertarian society. The next closest one being the Ferengi home planet, Ferenginar.)
Jesus doesn’t pay rates -by Burnt Out Teacher,
I rang the Holy Trinity Cathedral to see why they thought that, as a non-rate-paying entity, they deserved the amazing amount of $3 million of ratepayer money, and why I shouldn’t call this the Holy Trinity Cathedral Renovation Scam in my blog post…
… Let’s get this straight. Tax-free, rates-free: churches get income via tithes from fleecing their flock, and they get income from the profits of the businesses they run, but they aren’t required to pay tax or rates.
Interesting comments from one person who, BoT outs as a Seventh Day Adventist supporter…
So now you know about PRISM – how do you feel about Key giving the GCSB even MORE power? -Martyn Bradbury writes,
This is the 21st century Stasi, this is the neo Police State where we are all criminals, where we are all under surveillance, where we have no privacy and an Orwellian Big Brother keeps a lidless eye over us all.
1984 is now.
A bit late. It only took 30 years to arrive.
Congratulations Humanity; you are now part of the Great Collective. Never feel alone again. The State is watching you. The State will always watch you.
The only offence for which Peter Dunne is being punished is getting caught – Chris Trotter writes,
The possibility that Mr Dunne’s ideas concerning the inviolability of political correspondence, and his flirtation, however brief, with the idea of leaking the Kitteridge Report’s revelations, might both be expressions of a genuine belief in the citizen’s right to privacy, has not been taken seriously.
Hmmm, is it worth taking “seriously’?
Unless I’ve missed it, I’ve not seen any indication that Dunne is remotely interested in our rights to privacy. And anyway, the Kitteridge report was due to be released anyway. So, how did that help the cause of privacy and freedom from State surveillance?
Degrees of Separation – Wayne Hope writes,
In 1998 economists Srikanta Chatterjee and Nripesh Podder found that wealthy New Zealanders had substantially increased their share of national income. In 1983-84 New Zealand`s top income decile received 25.6 per cent of the national `cake`. In 1995-96 they received 29.6 per cent. The top 5 per cent increased their national share from 15.2 per cent to 19 per cent over the same period.
The late 1990s were bad days. People died from deep cuts to Health spending.
The Nats may’ve learned from their mistakes – but cuts to State spending continues on.
A Dunne Drama: Let’s focus on the important bit – the policy – Phoebe Fletcher writes,
It is a travesty that the implications of the Report itself and the new legislation being rammed through around the GCSB’s new powers to cover up retrospective illegality is not receiving more attention.
Phoebe’s right, fellow New Zealanders. While we’re distracted by cheap parlour detective guessing-games, the quiet march of neo-fascism continues it’s stealthy advance…
Sparks fly with yet more shocking right wing nuttery – Frank Macskasy writes,
The likes of Karl du Fresne denounce Radio NZ as a left-wing organisation; journalists are branded “leftist”; and media pundits feel the need to defend journos from being labelled as “left wing partisans” – whilst at the same time openly partisan, right-wing columnists like John Armstrong and Fran O’sullivan are (mostly) unchallenged as they spread their pro-National messages.
.
Blogpost of the Day
.
.
On Open Paracute, the question is asked, Fluoridation – are we dumping toxic metals into our water supplies? The author takes a look at some of the claims made by anti-flouridation activists – and finds that some of their claims are not as straight foward as they make out.
.
Action of the Week
Homelessness – The Big Sleepout 2013 Appeal – Martyn Bradbury writes,
On the 4th July I will be going homeless. For one cold night in the dead of winter I will be stripped of my creature comforts, exposed to the elements and given insight into what it means to sleep rough.
I live in the central city and I have for almost two decades. The homeless problem in central Auckland, has to my eyes steadily increased.
If we don’t bring attention to the poverty that is driving this homelessness, we won’t ever generate the solutions necessary to solve homelessness.
EVERY dollar I fundraise will be directly applied to Lifewise’s unique “no band aids” approach to homelessness. The Lifewise response continues to be Auckland’s most successful answer to the issue of homelessness. So before I bed down on a slab of concrete I’d love to ask if you might sponsor me. Please back me and please back this worthy cause by digging deep today.
Thank you.
.
Thought for the Day
.
~ Joe Blogger
“The Daily Blog Watch” Editor, Imbiber of Fine Sugary Drinks, & Cat Herder
.
~oo~
