If National wins ...

[Cuzzie]

They certainly do. She was a shocker. Her appearance on Back-benches last week was the first I'd really seen of her, and I'm sure all viewers knew it would be the last.

She certainly was. She was gay as well, more suited to Labour one would think - anyway gone now and good thing too.
National trim their deadwood, if Labour did that would there be a tree left standing?

[neopoleII]

just saw something on the news about some tv folks taking the wee's out of colin craig about the way he walks..... sort of like c3po of starwars.
...... and its the second time on tv that the wee's have been taken out of his gait.....
all good humor i guess...... picking on handicaps in a public and political way......
so i am looking forward to the wee's taken out of the likes of Mojo Mathers....... now that would cause a political uproar to those that can hear.
but alas there are politically ""correct"" handicaps and "no rules" handicaps......
When i was young..... i was a stutterer ....... my mind worked ok, just the output part was faulty....... but it is a fair game wee taking handicap..... sadly.....

i wonder if the left wing voters and their staunch spin doctors will continue to wee over handicap folks?......... even though i saw mr whale somewhere on that tv segment....... and the sound was off ..... so cant really comment on what was said........ just saw the c3p0 moves.
just goes to show what the quality of NZ's political parties are........
imagine a potential wheel chair bound person running for prime minister ???
the left wheel of society would have a field day.

so anyway....... back to the real story..... the nastie nats and hero cunliffe and saviors the greens,

politiks..... makes me laugh.

[BlackPeter]

OK - I guess David Cunliffe had already enough flak and I start to be sorry for the guy ... but than it sort of feels he is asking for it:

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/poli...dailyheadlines

With the Left running away from him in droves it sounds like he is now embarking to find his support under the church going population ...

[elZorro]

OK - I guess David Cunliffe had already enough flak and I start to be sorry for the guy ... but than it sort of feels he is asking for it:

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/poli...dailyheadlines

With the Left running away from him in droves it sounds like he is now embarking to find his support under the church going population ...

That's not what I got from the interview and the video. He looks to be very straight-up to me, and that's how he appeared in person too. He presented well on TV this morning, but of course the reporters are not giving him credit for any other words that he speaks, they just play the very short clips that put him in a poor light, if taken out of context. Hardly fair, but he's getting the hang of it. Every word he uses from now on, will be carefully checked over by the media, and the voters. It's a very tough job, being a leader.

[artemis]

That's not what I got from the interview and the video. He looks to be very straight-up to me, and that's how he appeared in person too. He presented well on TV this morning, but of course the reporters are not giving him credit for any other words that he speaks, they just play the very short clips that put him in a poor light, if taken out of context. Hardly fair, but he's getting the hang of it. Every word he uses from now on, will be carefully checked over by the media, and the voters. It's a very tough job, being a leader.

I try to listen objectively to what Mr Cunliffe says but it ain't easy. As they say, trust once lost is lost forever. OK, maybe not forever, but he has trust baggage now and that will continue to drag him down.

[blackcap]

You could not make this up. Yesterday in the house....

Cunliffe calls his government "the Gaybour government...."

[blackcap]

On a more serious note, I have been thinking about our MMP system and am concerned that there are a few flaws. For instance to promote democracy MMP gives smaller parties a chance to participate. Good. But as a voter who may for instance vote for Conservative, Mana, Act, NZF etc I am turned off by the cold fact that my vote will be totally wasted if my party do not achieve the 5% threshold. Therefore I do not vote for said minor party. Would it not be more equitable if I could have a conditional vote. I mean this. I vote Conservative/Mana/Act/NZF, but if they do not gain a seat or representation then I want my vote to go to National/Labour. Would that not give more incentive for voters to vote for a "minor" party and thus give them more of a chance along the way? Just musing out loud here and know that my example has circular inferences that may be difficult to compute but int his day and age of computers and spreadsheets it should not be too difficult.

[fungus pudding]

On a more serious note, I have been thinking about our MMP system and am concerned that there are a few flaws. For instance to promote democracy MMP gives smaller parties a chance to participate. Good. But as a voter who may for instance vote for Conservative, Mana, Act, NZF etc I am turned off by the cold fact that my vote will be totally wasted if my party do not achieve the 5% threshold. Therefore I do not vote for said minor party. Would it not be more equitable if I could have a conditional vote. I mean this. I vote Conservative/Mana/Act/NZF, but if they do not gain a seat or representation then I want my vote to go to National/Labour. Would that not give more incentive for voters to vote for a "minor" party and thus give them more of a chance along the way? Just musing out loud here and know that my example has circular inferences that may be difficult to compute but int his day and age of computers and spreadsheets it should not be too difficult.

We've had MMP for 6 election cycles now, yet only a minority of people understand it. Anymore complicated would be disastrous. I reckon if it were widely understood the 2011 referendum would have given us the supplementary member option; but no - MMP was picked with its requirement for 120 MPs, immediately followed by howls of protest about too many MPs.
I remember Kerre Whatshername on talkback expressing amusement about the number of callers who rang in to say they had voted for Winston but didn't have a clue where all the other NZ 1st MPs came from or how they got in. So while your idea has merit in theory, in practise the outcome might be terrifying.

[Snapper]

On a more serious note, I have been thinking about our MMP system and am concerned that there are a few flaws. For instance to promote democracy MMP gives smaller parties a chance to participate. Good. But as a voter who may for instance vote for Conservative, Mana, Act, NZF etc I am turned off by the cold fact that my vote will be totally wasted if my party do not achieve the 5% threshold. Therefore I do not vote for said minor party. Would it not be more equitable if I could have a conditional vote. I mean this. I vote Conservative/Mana/Act/NZF, but if they do not gain a seat or representation then I want my vote to go to National/Labour. Would that not give more incentive for voters to vote for a "minor" party and thus give them more of a chance along the way? Just musing out loud here and know that my example has circular inferences that may be difficult to compute but int his day and age of computers and spreadsheets it should not be too difficult.

We had the opportunity to pick STV (single transferable vote, which the Aussies use) but the referendum result was for MMP. Big mistake IMO. No wasted votes, no list MPs...lost opportunity.

[BlackPeter]

On a more serious note, I have been thinking about our MMP system and am concerned that there are a few flaws. For instance to promote democracy MMP gives smaller parties a chance to participate. Good. But as a voter who may for instance vote for Conservative, Mana, Act, NZF etc I am turned off by the cold fact that my vote will be totally wasted if my party do not achieve the 5% threshold. Therefore I do not vote for said minor party. Would it not be more equitable if I could have a conditional vote. I mean this. I vote Conservative/Mana/Act/NZF, but if they do not gain a seat or representation then I want my vote to go to National/Labour. Would that not give more incentive for voters to vote for a "minor" party and thus give them more of a chance along the way? Just musing out loud here and know that my example has circular inferences that may be difficult to compute but int his day and age of computers and spreadsheets it should not be too difficult.

Probably the best idea I heard so far about how we could improve MMP and make it more fair. Yes, it will require another tick-box on the polling paper, but how hard can it be for voters to understand "in case your first choice doesn't make it over the 5% (or whatever) hurdle, which party would be your second choice instead?

You have my vote ...