This story by the NZ Herald manages to sum up all that is wrong with the corporate NZ mainstream media.
It’s a story about how the Banks will survive even if a global economic crisis hits us, let’s look at their language and conclusions…
“The types of stress test we do on our bank now are a 50 per cent decline in house prices in Auckland, 40 per cent elsewhere, low dairy prices, 13 per cent unemployment, negative GDP … you name it, we put it in there and we can’t break the bank.”
…ummm. What?
A 50% price meltdown in Auckland, flatlining dairy prices and a 13% unemployment rate, but don’t worry the banks will be ok?
Is this a joke?
If we had a 50% meltdown in house prices and 13% unemployment, do these people honestly think NZers would leave the banks unburnt as they go on riots and mass protests?
What’s most hilarious about this is the fact that NZME is 86% owned by the banks. So, we have a story acknowledging there is a real possibility of an economic crisis, but don’t worry the banks who also happen to own this media company will be fine.
Sure the rest of us plebs will be unemployed and have lost any investment in our owner occupier homes but the bloody banks are sweet as.
This is the self interested corporate media we have in NZ.
All this talk of a meltdown and mainstream still can’t admit the recession is stored up and waiting for the day some one says I can’t get financed
“Banks” is meant to be a placeholder for finance capital, what is left out of such speculation is the looming subjective factor–Action of the people, with huge numbers of displaced, homeless and suddenly ‘poor’ people with no or little incomes political organisation would start to happen very quickly
think the magnificent demos on TPPA action day in Feb 2016–multiply that many times and across the country–and it would all be on for the ruling class–such class action would not be easy or pretty given the neo liberal consumerism at least half the country is in thrall to but it would be a great opportunity
ps–it is way past time to get some serious squatting happening in unoccupied houses owned by bludgers with multiple dwellings
There WILL BE a 50% drop in Auckland property values, and eventually something approaching a 100% drop in Auckland property values because Auckland as it currently exists has NO long term future (due to the inevitable collapse of the global oil economy and accelerating sea level rise etc.). That is 100% guaranteed.
However, before that stage is reached (2025 to 2030?) Auckland property values are likely to double from the current average of $1 million to $2 million, maybe even reaching $3 million in the short term because the stampede of economic and environmental refugees from overseas will increase over the coming years.
Of course the dumbed-down populace of NZ won’t lift a finger to protect themselves. We already know the mass dumbing-down process orchestrated by a series of governments in cohorts with corporations has been extremely successful: just observe the crap that is broadcast on television networks these days: it could hardly be worse! One or two less-mainstream channels broadcast something of substance a few times a week if we are lucky.
As for the mainstream ‘newspapers’, they only ever serve the short-term interests of those that own them and are employed by them, and the short-term interests of politicians and businesses. That is not news. It’s been that way for decades.
As for banks, they will be okay as long as governments continue to kowtow to them, subsidise them and bail them out…..which will be for quite a while longer, since banks own the government and banks own all the mainstream political parties.
By the way, if you disagree with the agenda of the banks or the politicians who implement the agenda of the banks you get ignored, incarcerated, or annihilated, depending on how vocal you are. It’s been that way for several hundred years.
The ‘good news’ is that the utterly corrupt and dysfunctional political-economic system is now in the process of annihilating itself via CO2 emissions: we are witnessing record high CO2 and record low ice cover, and both are being made rapidly worse by the political-economic system. It’s a pity the natural world has to go down with it.
Haha, you think New Zealanders will riot, revolt, seize control???
I’m a foreigner in this fair Land of the Clean Green Lie and from what I’ve observed of its complacent, supine, wilfully sleepy populace, the only thing that’d make them riot would be if some bastard cut their tellyboxes off.
So true. Yep Kiwis really don’t realise how bad things could get. So yes TV is the last of our problems its rubbish anyway.
I have Kiwisaver, like the rest of New Zealanders, and this story worried me.
ACT are happy to support National, to raise the Superannuation age entitlement in the short term and abolish it in the medium to long term, because most people will have a substantial Kiwisaver nest-egg to live off by the time they reach 73. Eventually, with longevity increasing because of ACT’s healthcare policies, the retirement age could be easily eased out to 75 or even 80.
If National won’t make the hard superannuation decisions, then ACT could work with the Greens, Maori, Gareth Morgan and as a last resort Labour
If the big banks are not a safe investment, they, or Kiwis’ contributions, need to be underwritten by the taxpayer, the same way South Canterbury Finance was. A little more debt won’t be a problem, if the health, education, welfare and police financial drains on taxpayers, are fully user-pays.
A vote for ACT will ensure a prosperous retirement for working kiwis. ACT policy is as follows: ACT believes that retirement is a predictable expense for which the vast majority of citizens are able to save independently, given clear signals about what the government will and will not be providing. Under the Status quo, superannuation is an enormous fiscal cost that is subject to political manipulation.
Yes your Kiwisaver money is in the hands of the private sector owned and run by banks and their daughter companies . Your money is not safe. There is no Govt guarantee.
That is why Helen was allowed to set up Kiwisaver.
Norman Kirk set up a Govt guaranteed scheme where your money was invest in NZ, and controlled by Govt. Not some private fly by night gambling arm of banks that charge you for the privileged of them having access to your money at any time.
Act – smoke and mirrors on this issue..
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