Here's a few numbers for those of you with a statistical bent:
1,095,968 - the number of people who party voted for Act, United Future or National in 2011
12,000 - the number of people who turned out to watch the Blues lose their eighth match of the Super Rugby season last night (sorry Blues fans)
9258 - the number of people who packed Vector Arena on Tuesday night to watch the Breakers win the ANBL championship
3500 - the number of people reported by RadioLive (4pm bulletin, 28/4/2012) to be on the Aotearoa Is Not For Sale hikoi in Auckland this afternoon. (Yes; even the woeful Blues drew nearly four times that number on a wet Friday night!)
61 - the number of votes that National, Act and United Future hold in the 121-seat 50th Parliament
60 - the number of votes that Labour, the Greens, NZ First, the Maori Party and the Mana Party hold in the 121-seat 50th Parliament
One - the majority, and therefore the mandate.
Perhaps the opponents of the government's plans to sell a minority shareholding in a few state assets got their own numbers wrong.
13 comments:
The 6pm News is on shortly, whats the bet the lead stories will be of the 'overwhelming' public anger at the asset sales.
You think? Actually, I think that Fred Allen and the bus driver murder will push the hikoi to the lower reaches
I'm not arguing that National don't have a mnadate, because I think they do, but technically, more people voted for parties that oppose the Partial Privatisation, than those parties that support it.
Given that the petition campaign to stop asset sales hasn't really started yet, I would say 3,500 people is an excellent turnout. We'll see how much support this campaign has when it comes time to collect signatures. I would say the target of 400,000 signatures will be reached easily.
I disagree Alex; the organisers were boasting that this would be a bigger march than the anti-mining protest of a couple of years ago when ten times today's number turned out. Today's march suggests that only the politically active care about this issue.
The anti-asset march today was very successful, Inventory2, and got strong coverage on the 6 o'clock news. It'll grow and grow til it's an unstoppable monster that will crush Key, unless he changes direction.
Your " One - the majority, and therefore the mandate." is pathetic, and I mean that in the true sense of the word - you should be pitied for having to revert to such an argument, especially in light of John Banks' present terminal situation. That majority is wafer thin and will be crushed by the uprising of new Zealanders who don't want their assets sold.I predict, you ain't seen nothin' yet!
Great turn out also in Nelson today, 700 to 1000 or so marching through Trafalgar Street, we ran out of petitions more than once, it was a signing frenzy! Have left some petitions at the Free House and also at Deville cafe. I cant see any issue getting the numbers if today was any indication.
@ Anon; it got little more than a passing mention on One News. And I predict that you're wrong.
TWENTY
The record number of consecutive wins for mare Black Caviar.
Bloody hell KS!...sorry for the mis perception but i was agreeing with you, LOL...i thought it a non event also, but was lamenting the absence of an unbiased News Media ... you're wrong about me being wrong, on TV3 it was right after a quick mention of Fred Allan's passing...pretty much the lead 'scandal of the day'
With the greats respect!
regardless of the political emotion, the basic maths dont add up. Say ( as most Nats and Labs are saying)the Govt gets a 10% return return or dividend which is 50% financed ( what they are selling to pay debt), we know that they are borrowing at 5% from the Chinese. They are getting 15% return on net investment as it stands. By selling and repaying debt, that income halves, and the return and cashflow drops 33%.
When profiting from Debt, dont repay debt, basic investment fundementals.
Simple as the equation is, the Govt is selling to repaying debt, and I'm surprised the left havent mentioned this.
Polls consistently show strong disapproval of the asset sales and remember Grey Power (hardly the most left leaning or liberal organisation) is one of the main sponsors of the petition.
http://www.3news.co.nz/Poll-shows-asset-sales-unpopular/tabid/1607/articleID/243681/Default.aspx
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/polls/5993822/Voters-turned-off-by-SOE-retirement-policies
http://theprogressreport.co.nz/2012/02/21/yet-another-poll/
The kind of issues that invoke overwhelming public anger in recent memory are the "anti smacking" bill and as you say the mining in the coromandel. When it comes to state assets people think they're paying far too much for power anyway, leave it to the pollies to sort out.
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