If National wins ...

[craic]

ElZ you have missed the main point - "A caucus that remains overwhelmingly hostile to him". Even if this is heavily overstated, he is not popular with the caucus. I think that that is a fair criticism and a major obstacle for the party at the next election. It's not likely to result in voters changing allegiance but it will lead to abstentions, people who lose their enthusiasm and just stay home on the day.

e

[elZorro]

ElZ you have missed the main point - "A caucus that remains overwhelmingly hostile to him". Even if this is heavily overstated, he is not popular with the caucus. I think that that is a fair criticism and a major obstacle for the party at the next election. It's not likely to result in voters changing allegiance but it will lead to abstentions, people who lose their enthusiasm and just stay home on the day.

Craic, I think Labour is up and away on the basis of last week. The next polls should show something. I had a bit of a look through the SST this morning. One news item I'd missed from two days ago was that John Key stated his source for Winston's visits to Kim Dotcom was Whaleoil blogger Cameron Slater. Which Cameron replied to saying "If he said so, then that's the case". National has in turn been accused of feeding data to right-leaning Whaleoil, and John Key calls Cameron up frequently. So Whaleoil is mostly an extension of their straight website, the latter being looked after by Enlighten Designs, a 50-person website developer firm here in Hamilton. They will be paid to do metrics on hits for the website, feeding all this back to the National Party.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/poli...-Peters-source

But I still think that John Key would not have made a claim in parliament about Winston Peter's visits unless he'd had it verified. A tidy little hidden IP camera on the driveway or roads leading to the Coatesville mansion could do all of this work for a few thousand dollars, a one-off cost. Our motorways and some malls are already being monitored as normal procedure. Prices have dropped a lot over the last few years.


Adam Dudding had a perceptive article about Progressive Enterprises, also.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/indu...arket-bargains

Not naming this "hard-nosed" new senior executive from Australia, he points out that based on info from insider(s), a culture change for the worse has been noted after this person's arrival.

Progressive is a big firm, but this item popped up about a senior appointment late last year.

http://www.archivesearch.co.nz/?webi...rticleid=66877

[Major von Tempsky]

After the continual pain of being regularly exposed to that ignoramus, card carrying member of the Labour Party Rod Oram, it is a complete joy to read Professor Keith Woodford on the dairy industry in the Business section of the Sunday Star Times today.

[elZorro]

After the continual pain of being regularly exposed to that ignoramus, card carrying member of the Labour Party Rod Oram, it is a complete joy to read Professor Keith Woodford on the dairy industry in the Business section of the Sunday Star Times today.

Mr Woodford might be correct in the shorter term, MVT. Brands are very difficult and expensive to establish. But the smaller dairy companies don't have as much product to sell each year, so are a more natural fit for consumer brand experimentation. Good to have a bit of both going on. The Chinese can build skyscrapers in a matter of weeks, so if they needed to, NZ style dairy farms wouldn't take long.


I thought Rod Oram's article on revisiting CER (that was a long time ago it was established, Muldoon in the photo) was fair enough.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post...d-little-acorn

There must be some things we can do better than the Aussies, and some things they will do better, a partnership in some industries makes sense. John Key showed he was out of touch on foreign policy. Since when would NZers be "guest workers" in Australia? Rod Oram is paid to be a guest speaker at conferences, so perhaps not everyone thinks he is an ignoramus.

[fungus pudding]

But Rod Oram is paid to be a guest speaker at conferences, so perhaps not everyone thinks he is an ignoramus.

I have had the misfortune to be present at the odd Rod Oram speech. Never in my life have I encountered a more negative, pessimistic depressing speaker. His whole style is characterised by a boring, humourless presentation. If you are ever likely to attend any function where he is a speaker, check your pockets first for knives, razor blades or any similar objects that you could use for self harm. He's quite likely to push you over the edge.

[bottlerboy]

Since when would NZers be "guest workers" in Australia?

Come on EZ you know it has been ever since Helen Clark signed NZ up to it

[elZorro]

Come on EZ you know it has been ever since Helen Clark signed NZ up to it

If the intent of the overall policy is so bad, then it could have been corrected in the years since. I think the point is in the numbers. Now 450,000 NZers are over there (most) trying to earn a living. They are mainly over there, because during the last few years, our productivity has not kept up with either Australia or the OECD average. Aussie happens to have a very high wage rate compared worldwide too. But as jobs are shed in Australia, those NZers who are sort of stuck over there, are finding that their taxes have not been enough to earn any kind of benefit should they fall on hard times, and that there is no subsidised higher education for their children, unless they've been there since about 8 years old. On the other hand, we have been civil to Australians when they turned up here.

Why don't NZers simply return here? For one thing, they would find a shortage of houses in urban areas, and a shortage of well-paid technical jobs of the kind they're used to. No guarantee they'd be better off here, although quite a few are returning, on average. Some NZers have gone to Australia to get out of family support payments, but I have no idea on the numbers.

I have not seen the National Govt mentioning anything about a special policy to encourage expats back to NZ. The 'market economy' will fix all of that apparently. We've been waiting the 30 years since 1984 when the globalisation experiment started, for the global economy to see us right.

[Major von Tempsky]

A continuing dose of 45 degrees in the summer and continued easing of the hard commodities will see them flooding back over here, its already started as a trickle.

[fungus pudding]

A continuing dose of 45 degrees in the summer and continued easing of the hard commodities will see them flooding back over here, its already started as a trickle.

Don't be suprised if it turns into a flood of Australians pouring in over the next few years as our economy continues to improve against theirs which is falling to bits - that has more of an influence on ditch-hopping than weather.
That's assuming Labour/Green don't get hold of the cheque book which would see NZers flee, perhaps to Haiti, Zimbabwe or Bangladesh, anywhere at all that has a better economic future than NZ under that frightening duo.

[Cuzzie]

Nope, that's a big nope.
Come on do the figures Russel, that's appalling.

So the Greens will loan households up to $15,000 at low interest rates to help them install solar power if the Greens get elected & an estimation would save a family $100 on electricity bills a year. Wow, save $100 a year for a $15,000 loan plus 4.1% interest ... really!
Wait it gets worse, they get to pay back this loan over 15 years. If calculated out at a flat rate of 4.1% over 15 years which it wont be, that works out to cost an extra $86.75 a month on top of their power bill for 15 years, all to save $100 a year. You have got to be kidding me. Don't forget your not going off grid here, so you will still have line and units used charged by your provider. Most of your units will be ticking over during the time your panels wont be working for you. What you really need is the batteries to work with you solar panels, but they are very expensive and the Greenies have left them out because it makes their scheme well and truly over priced. Funny that. Without the batteries solar energy wont save you money, it will cost you money. With the batteries it will take many decades to pay for the expense and by then your panels a failing. No brainier man, you should wait until green energy becomes more economical.

I do have solar panels, just two for Solar water heating. I pay them off each month interest free for $119.50. I save that same amount or thereabouts in energy units used - month in month out and the system pays for itself. It will be paid off in three years for a total of a five years contract (might be six) and zero money put up front by me. I save $1434 a year not a hundred bucks, it pays for itself and I put zero money into the Nova Energy plan.
That's what I call a solar power initiative Russel Norman, but you wont put yours or the Green Party name behind a scheme like that , because you did not think of it first. Kind of like Drug manufactures ignoring natural remedies because they can't trade mark it and make money out of the cure. That's why I left the Greenpeace movement back in the 80s and exactly why we should all see right through them now.

My Solar water heating plan is through Nova Energy and would highly recommend it to anyone. Our bill is high each month because we run a Spa Pool which can be $100 extra over the winter months and we found Nova Energy's scheme was the best way to save on energy.

My advise is to wait at least another five years before even considering solar panels for all your household electricity needs, the technology is there now but the price is just to high.

Here is the Heralds story on the Greens poor incentive. Greens launch new solar power initiative

Am I wrong?