Keeping Stock

Deja vu all over again...

2012-01-31T16:06:00.002+13:00

So Tariana Turia is threatening to have the Maori Party (all three of them) walk away from their confidence and supply deal with John Key's government; the Herald reports:

The Maori Party is considering breaking from the National-led Government over asset sales.

Maori Party co-leader Tariana Turia says the party will consider walking out of its relationship with the National Party if a Treaty clause is not extended to those state owned enterprises tagged for partial sale.

Ms Turia said today that the issue was similar to the foreshore and seabed issue for Maori.

"If it comes down to the wire, the Maori Party will have to consider its position with the Government."

She said the party would meet with iwi leaders to gather their reaction, although some had already made their displeasure known. She said the party was beholden to iwi and its constituents and would follow their lead.

This is of course not new ground for Mrs Turia, who was a Minister in the Clark government before she left Labour due to the Foreshore and Seabed controversy. That was indeed the catalyst for the formation of the Maori Party. So in a way, it's deja vu all over again, and we shouldn't be surprised by it.

We wonder however if there might be a deeper root cause than simply the issue of asset sales, which incidentally was EXCLUDED from the Maori Party's C&S agreement. The Maori Party is on a precipice, and may well not survive beyond the 2014 election.

And Mrs Turia should carefully consider the implications of such a petulant action. After all, the Maori Party did very well in its three years in partnership with National between 2008 and 2011. The Foreshore and Seabed legislation was repealed, and the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act was passed to replace it. The Maori Party gained mana from Pita Sharples' appointment as Minister of Maori Affairs. And Mrs Turia herself won a significant victory with the implementation of her Whanau Ora policy.

It would be a significant political moment were the Maori Party to walk away from ministerial appointments, and a constructive role with the government. We rather suspect that common ground will be found, and that the status quo will prevail.

Speaking of retirements...

2012-01-31T12:22:00.007+13:00

And whilst we're on the subject of retirements, Iain O'Brien has reluctantly announced his retirement from all cricket; Stuff reports:

Iain O'Brien has finally conceded defeat to his aching body, announcing his retirement from first-class cricket to his 13,000 Twitter followers last night.

A stress fracture in his lower back, caused by a congenital fusion of two vertebrae, was the final straw and a surgeon delivered the news O'Brien half expected earlier this month.

The 22-test seamer and Cricket Wellington officially part ways today, with promising fast bowler Scott Kuggeleijn elevated to the 12-strong contract list from tomorrow.

"I'm disappointed. I genuinely wanted to play and I tried my best and did everything I could. I'm at peace with it now," O'Brien told The Dominion Post last night. "I know I'm not going to play international cricket. I'm cool about it. I'm fine."

The 35-year-old last played first-class cricket for Middlesex in July, 2010, before the England Cricket Board denied his bid to be classed as a local player.

After surgery last April to re-attach a hamstring tendon, he was contracted by Wellington with a view to reclaiming his test spot, which he vacated in December, 2009 to start a family with his English wife, Rosie. They have a daughter, Alethea. But after months of promising rehab, the nets were as close as O'Brien got to returning for Wellington this summer before his back injury worsened.

O'Brien was told he had the back of a 60-year-old after an X-ray in 2003. In 2007 he was advised by a surgeon to hang up his boots, but played through the pain. "I've cried in changing rooms and hotels all around the world, but how could I walk away? I've got more out of my body and career than I should have. Time's up," he tweeted.

He took 73 test wickets at 33.27, after walking away in peak form against Pakistan in late 2009. From 91 first-class matches took 322 wickets at 26.06.

We will remember O'Brien as a lion-hearted bowler, who gave his absolute best every time he played for New Zealand. His time at the top level was relatively brief, but he certainly made an impact.

And it wasn't just on the cricket pitch that O'Brien made an impact; he's a social media regular, and for a while had a very entertaining cricket blog. We'd link to it, but unfortunately the link is broken, a bit like O'Brien's body!

We wish Iain O'Brien all the best for life after cricket, although we don't doubt that we'll hear from his via social media. Cricket needs more characters like him.

Another big job to fill

2012-01-31T11:48:00.002+13:00

Hot on the heels of Dr Allan Bollard's annoucement yesterday that he will step down as Reserve Bank governor, there's been another high-profile resignation signalled today; the Herald reports:

Air New Zealand chief executive officer Rob Fyfe has resigned.

Fyfe, who has been in charge at the national carrier since 2005, this morning confirmed he would be leaving his post at the end of the year.

His decision was made partly to allow the airline's "talented and capable" executives the room to realise their full potential he said.

"After almost a decade at Air New Zealand, I am an Air New Zealander to the core and I live and breathe Air New Zealand every day. At the same time I'm very conscious that I am surrounded by many very talented and capable executives and if they are to grow and realise their full potential I have to create the space to allow them to do so," he says.

Fyfe said he was proud of his role in improving the financial situation of Air New Zealand since inheriting signifcant economic challenges when he took the role.

"While many of the challenges were evident at the outset, many unexpected hurdles also emerged. That is the nature of the aviation industry, and I continue to be proud of how Air New Zealanders rally around to support each other."

Air New Zealand has certainly gone ahead during Rob Fyfe's time as leader, although he hasn't endered himself to everyone. Fyfe has a strong public profile, but his results speak for themselves.

And he has been praised by his Chairman; read on:

Board chairman John Palmer praised Fyfe's contribution to the airline.

He credited him with allowing Air New Zealand to remain profitable while other airlines lost billions of dollars in the global economic crisis.

"Alongside this Air New Zealand's innovations, high customer satisfaction ratings and culture have become the envy of airlines around the world. Rob's leadership skills have also been acknowledged internationally."

That Air New Zealand has twice been voted the international Airline of the Year in the last three years is testament to the quality of its services and its innovation, and is something which Rob Fyfe can draw personal satisfaction from. His shoes will not be easy to fill.

Emmerson finds a new target

2012-01-31T07:12:00.000+13:00

Herald cartoonist Rod Emmerson must have spent the summer studying photographs of David Shearer, knowing that there will be plenty of opportunities to lampoon the new Labour leader as any cartoonost worth his ink would do. So his first effort isn't too bad at all:

Now, remind us again. How many hectares of New Zealand land was sold to non-Chinese between 1999 and 2008? Is it the selling of the land, or the ethnicity of the buyers that Mr Shearer is lamenting?

The Umpire strikes back

2012-01-31T06:30:00.001+13:00

From the "strange but true" department, Fox Sports reports:

A cricket umpire killed a teenage spectator in Bangladesh by hitting him on the head with a bat in a dispute over a contested decision, police said on Sunday.

Nazrul Islam, 15, ran onto the pitch during an amateur game in the remote northern district of Kishoreganj and started an argument with the umpire, who took one of the players' bats and hit the teenager.
Islam showed no serious injury from the blow during the game on Friday but suffered an internal hemorrhage overnight and died in the hospital the following day, local police chief Mosharraf Hossain said.
"The two argued over a not-out decision by the umpire," Hossain said.
"He accused the umpire of bias. At one stage, the umpire became angry, took a bat and hit the young boy on the head."
The umpire was being sought for questioning but had gone into hiding, he added.

Now during our years as an umpire, there were certainly times where we would have gladly dealt to a recalitrant player, but they were generally bigger than us, so we resisted the temptation. What is reported above though does seem to be an extreme response from the umpire, and it might just put his fitness for the job in question.

Retort of the Day

2012-01-30T15:27:00.002+13:00

Gerry Brownlee has responded to claims by Liane Dalziel that former Bexley home-owners were not notified of the demolition of their former homes. Now Stuff reports that Brownlee has responded, and as responses go, it's not that bad at all; check this out:

Christchurch East Labour MP Lianne Dalziel today said some former residents were upset after not being informed of the demolition.

Brownlee called Dalziel's comments a "bit of a beat-up".

"I think this is a demonstration of the new bipartisanship approach the Labour Party wants to take and an indication of no change," he said, referring to Labour leader David Shearer's recent comments that the party would take a bipartisan approach to the quake recovery.

And Brownlee explains, for Liane Dalziel's benefit, the reality of thre job the CERA is facing:

Brownlee said residents had been informed of the demolitions and a street meeting was held on Friday.

However, with more than 5000 homes to be demolished in Christchurch's red zones, it was not practical to tell former homeowners about the impending demolition of their homes, he said.

"Once you have settled, you know the house is either going to be moved to another site ... or demolished."

The current approach of not informing former homeowners was reasonable and would not change, he said.

'Nuff said, wethinks.

Equal pay for equal work

2012-01-30T12:20:00.002+13:00

The Australian Open pays equal prize money to the winners of the Men's and Women's singles events. Despite that, men's matches throughout the two-week duration of the Open are the best of five sets, whilst women's matches are contested over the best of three sets.

Is this fair? The weekend's events beg that question; check this out:

After nearly an hour-and-a-half of tennis racket, Victoria Azarenka had her first grand slam title and the world No 1 ranking.

Azarenka overcame a nervous start in losing the first two games to win 12 of the next 13 and crush Maria Sharapova 6-3 6-0 in a one-sided Australian Open women's singles final.

Compare and contrast this to the epic match from last night:

Novak Djokovic wore down Rafael Nadal in the longest Grand Slam singles final in the history of professional tennis, winning 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7 (5), 7-5 after 5 hours, 53 minutes to claim his third Australian Open title.

Djokovic sealed victory at 1.37 a.m. Monday local time and became the fifth man since the Open Era began in 1968 to win three straight Grand Slam finals.

The Men's final lasted a Grand Slam record of 5 hours and 53 minutes, and both players were absolutely spent at the conclusion of the match. Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal were on the court for almost four times as long as the Women's Singles finalists, and yet they take home the same prize money.

Where's the fairness in that? Surely, this weekend has shown once and for all that if the women want the same money as the mean earn, at the very least they must start playing five-set matches. After all, girls can do anything, can't they?

Dear Chelsea...

2012-01-30T09:57:00.002+13:00

So Chelsea Scott's ex-partner has been arrested for the murder of six-month old baby Serenity Scott-Dinnington in April last year; the Herald reports:

The boyfriend of a Waikato mother whose 6-month-old daughter died of non-accidental injuries last April will appear in court today charged with the infant's murder.

Waikato detectives yesterday arrested Matthew Ellery and charged him with murdering Serenity Jay Scott-Dinnington at her Ngaruawahia home.

Last night, Serenity's mother, Chelsea Scott, responded to news of the arrest by changing her relationship status on Facebook from 'in a relationship' to 'single'.

She also posted a message saying her "beautiful baby gurl" could rest in peace now."Rest in peace my angel. Mummy loves u always!"

Detective Senior Sergeant Mark Greene said the accused man would appear in the Hamilton District Court.

So it's taken an arrest for Chelsea Scott to consider her relationship with the alleged killer over; excuse us, but that's poles apart from the values to which we subscribe; especially when we read this further down in the story:

On January 6, Ms Scott gave birth to a child fathered by Ellery. Child, Youth and Family took the baby less than 48 hours later.

Ms Scott's 6-year-old son, Travis, has been in CYF care since the incident last year.

Ellery appeared with Ms Scott on Campbell Live last year to protest his innocence and to rebut claims that he had anger issues.

He said in the interview that he had tried to do CPR on Serenity. "It was too hard and it wasn't working. Chelsea was a mess and I was shaking."

Ms Scott was asked if she believed that Ellery was not responsible for Serenity's death. She said: "Yes, I believe him. People haven't seen the way Matthew is with kids."

Ms Scott said she knew who the baby's killer was and pointed the finger elsewhere. On Facebook earlier, she had said the killer was walking around "as if nothing had happened" and she wanted to see justice done. "I know for a fact who killed her."

So we say this to Chelsea; if you knew "for a fact" who killed your baby, did you bother to pass that information on to the police? Somehow, we doubt it.

Sadly, this case is typical of the litany of child abuse deaths. The family clams up and bands together, because the reputation or street cred of the killer is obviously far more important than the concept of justice for a child whose life has been snuffed out in a moment of rage. That attitude sickens us.

So we're pleased that an arrest has been made in this case, and we hope that in due course, that justice is done. In the meantime, the "single" tag on Chelsea Scott's Facebook page should be an absolute red flag to potential suitors until such time as she comes to the understanding that a child's life is far, far more valuable than a partner's reputation.

Rising from the ashes

2012-01-30T08:10:00.003+13:00

Six months ago, the future of the Wellington Phoenix was looking pretty grim. The club's owner Terry Serepisos was fighting a battle to avoid bankruptcy, and coach Ricki Herbert barely had a team, let alone a full squad for the upcoming season.

Six months is a long time in sport. This morning, the Wellington Phoenix sits in second place on the A-League ladder after a terrific 3-1 victory over the fourth-placed Melbourne Heart at the Ring of Fire yesterday. And the good folk of Wellington listened to Gareth Morgan's pleas; 13,601 turned out to cheer the Phoenix home; their best Wellington crowd of the season; Sam Worthington from the Dom-Post reports:

The buzz is back at Westpac Stadium, as Wellington responded to Gareth Morgan's call to arms and the Phoenix came to the party with three A-League points to surge into second place.

Yesterday's 3-1 win over Melbourne Heart in front of a season-best Wellington crowd of 13,601 lifted the Phoenix ahead of defending champions Brisbane Roar and although the minor premiership is probably out of reach, a home final is now there for the taking.

It is uncharted territory for the Phoenix, who had been written off as likely wooden spooners by many A-League observers after a tumultuous off-season.

But after getting the lay of the land, the new Welnix owners are stepping up their game off the pitch, just as Ricki Herbert's charges are on it. Co-owner Morgan pleaded with the fans to turn out en masse and they enjoyed a dominant Phoenix performance as Paul Ifill struck twice and Chris Greenacre once.

There have been no star signings but things are starting to happen under Morgan and co: a new strip and new sponsors while promotion of home matches has gone up a level.

There was a lot to like in the way that the 'Nix played yesterday. Herbert has a pretty settled side, and there's genuine competition for places in the starting team; a far cry from the beginning of the season when those who were fit played.

And there's a great spirit in the side to, underlined yesterday by defender Manny Muscat. Muscat has been on leave in Melbourne since the Newcastle game a week ago, awaiting the birth of his first child. But said baby has shown no signs of emerging, so Muscat flew from Melbourne yesterday, arriving in Wellington just an hour or so before kick-off, and playing a blinder. Muscat was instrumental in the 'Nix's third goal with a pinpoint pass setting up Paul Ifill to score. Muscat now returns to Melbourne to resume what we hope will be a short vigil.

The only negative for the 'Nix is that five of their eight remaining matches are on the road, but with two away wins in their last two matches, they've broken the hoodoo of winning on the road. With third-placed Brisbane and fourth-placed Melbourne Heart struggling, there's no reason why the 'Nix can't hang on to second, which would give them home finals advantage well into the play-offs.

Well done Wellington Phoenix.

Tony Hodges? It's Mallard speaking...

2012-01-30T07:47:00.003+13:00

So the unsightly Australia Day protest in Canberra has come back to bite the Gillard government on the bum; Stuff reports:

An Australian Prime Ministerial staffer has been linked to yesterday's ugly protest incident in Canberra, forcing his resignation and acutely embarrassing PM Julia Gillard.

In an early evening statement, the Prime Minister dismissed as 'false' claims that one of her staff had spoken to people at the Aboriginal Tent Embassy prior to yesterday's angry protest that temporarily trapped her and Opposition Leader Tony Abbott.

But Ms Gillard acknowledges that a member of her media unit 'did call another individual yesterday and disclose the presence of the Opposition Leader at the Lobby restaurant. This information was subsequently passed on to a member of the Aboriginal Tent Embassy.'

The Prime Minister says the media officer did not 'suggest or encourage violence' but that his action 'was an error of judgement. As such, the staff member's resignation has been accepted.'

He is Tony Hodges, one of four press secretaries working in Julia Gillard's media unit.

The link is deeply embarrassing for the Prime Minister and leaves her shouldering some of the blame for an incident where many had pinned responsibility on Opposition Leader, Tony Abbott.

Tony Abbott is right to be calling for an official inquiry into this incident, despite the resignation/sacking of Tony Hodges (take your pick; did he fall or was he pushed?). It's a dirty trick of the worst possible kind, but there's a karmic element in that Julia Gillard bore the brunt of the protest from the Tent People.

But it made us wonder; given that Tony Hodges is now without work, will he be receiving a phone call from Trevor Mallard offering him a job on this side of the ditch?

How good is Lydia?

2012-01-30T07:00:00.003+13:00

Lydia Ko made history yesterday. She became the youngest golfer ever to win a professional golf tournament; the Herald reports:

Standing over a putt to put her into the record books today, it's no wonder New Zealand 14-year-old Lydia Ko was nervous.

While it was only a short one-footer, Ko had memories in her mind of last year's "failure" at the New South Wales Open, when she three-putted on the final green to lose by one stroke to Caroline Hedwall.

This time there was no slip and Ko efficiently holed out to become the youngest player to win a professional golf tournament.

Ko, the world's top amateur, took out the remarkable victory at the Oatlands course in Sydney by four shots over Becky Morgan of Wales, shooting a three-under-par final round of 69 to finish 14-under for the tournament.

In doing so she beat the men's mark set by Japan's Ryo Ishikawa, who won his first professional title aged 15 years, eight months, and the women's record of Australian Amy Yang who won the Australian Ladies Masters aged 16 years, 192 days.

The win comes just a week after Ko won Australian Amateur title in Melbourne.

Lydia Ko is an amazing golfing talent. To have the composure to hold off seasoned professionals at just 14 years old is an incredible feat, yet she remains grounded; read on:

"It's pretty amazing," said Ko, who turns 15 on April 24. "I don't really know what to say ... I'm really happy and to be part of history is like a miracle. It's not something you can have by clicking your fingers.

"It was really nerve-wracking," she added. "I had a few deep breaths out there [on the 18th hole]. I was nervous until the last second. [I was] thinking of last year and I looked back and there were so many people watching."

Ko began the day with a four-shot cushion over playing partner Lyndsey Wright, a 32-year-old who picked up five birdies on the front nine.

But rather than crack, Ko - who dropped just two shots all weekend - hit birdies of her own on eight and 16.

In the end it was Wright who came off second best when posting back-to-back bogeys on 16 and 17 which allowed Morgan, who shot six-under to claim second place.

And check out this response from her playing partner for the day, Lyndsey Wright:

Wright, who finished in a tie for third, said of Ko: "The only thing I could've done is get my putter out and smack her in the legs.

"She just played wonderful golf and did not make a mistake. It's amazing to see her and think she's only 14.

"This is a historic moment for women's golf. It was no different from playing with a seasoned pro on the LPGA. I put a lot of pressure on, and she did not fall apart at all.

"She's going to be an exceptional player if she keeps doing what she's doing."

She is indeed going to be an exceptional player. We understand that Ko is not going to turn professional until she's at least sixteen; but that's fifteen months away, and one wonders what records she might set before then.

Lydia Ko is the world's best amateur woman player; there's no reason that one day that she might not be the best female golfer on the planet.

Who makes you fat?

2012-01-29T14:50:00.003+13:00

Deborah Coddigton has a thought-provoking column in today's Herald on Sunday. Entitled The market's to blame for obesity? Fat chance it begins:

It's official: we're a nation of idiots who can't make decisions to save ourselves or take responsibility for our problems.

That's according to two academics from Otago University, researchers in public health, Dr Gabrielle Jenkin and Penny Field, who specialise in the obesity epidemic.

Interviewed this week by Kathryn Ryan on National Radio, Field tossed off a comment which sent me into deep despair. Obesity, she said, was "not a problem with individual choice and self-discipline, which we've proved successfully doesn't work".

Instead it's the fault of "big institutions and the market".

The obese as victims. It's come to this. Fat people are mentally incapable of choosing what's right and wrong when it comes to putting food in their mouths.

In New Zealand, 63 per cent of us are overweight or obese, so, by Field and Jenkin's reckoning, the brain power of 63 per cent of the New Zealand population is on par with labradors or ponies which can't stop eating themselves to death.

Government needed to do something, they complained, starting with more regulation of advertising, particularly on children's television.

What I interpret from this is that, zombie-like, our children are brainwashed into wanting bad food.

In turn, they demand this bad food from pliable parents who can't say no and, too dumb to discern healthy food from bad food, meekly buy that which "the market" or "the big institutions" persuade them to buy.

How conspiratorial.

If this is the case, we might as well give up. The Government could just nationalise all food outlets, supermarkets, dairies, greengrocers and farmers' markets and the Minister for Food Safety could have an army of inspectors to ensure we only eat healthy food, with no fat or sugar.

And why stop there? Why not have the Government issue us all with packed lunches every day? After all, it's not just our children who are obese.

And she's dead right. Obesity is not the fault of the government, or of the market. Obesity (other than for medical reasons such as hormonal imbalance) is the result of our choices. And progressively, we have as a nation and as individuals been making bad choices. That's why we have an obesity epidemic.

As we've mentioned before, She Who Must Be Obeyed and we have embarked on a bit of a mission this year; to get healthy, and to shed some of those unwanted kilograms that our bodies have laboured under the weight of for too many years. That too was a choice; going on eating as we were would have been all too easy, but it was doing us long-term harm. So we're following a plan which has meant we've had to eliminate a number of items from our diet. We're four weeks into a six-week phase, and the results are already becoming evident; clothes are far looser, and belts are needing to be tightened. We can't quantify it yet, because we don't weigh in for another fortnight, but the weight loss for us at least has been significant.

Has it been easy? Heck, no! Some of our favourite foods were on the prohibited substances list; what we'd do for a chocolate biscuit right now, or a slice of toast! But is it making a difference? Absolutely. We feel less bloated, less breathless and we're sleeping far better. We've never in our lives eaten as many fruits and vegetables as we have in the last four weeks, so that's great.

Did "the market" make us overweight? In a word, no. Our choices were what caused us to gain far too much weight; a sedentary lifestyle, convenience foods and comfort eating were our downfall, and they were all things that were within our control, but where we made poor or lazy choices.

We have made a choice to get healthy this year, just as in the past we made choices which had the consequence of turning us into Mr Blobby. And Deborah Coddington is right on the money when she suggests that blaming the market is just a cop-out.

Successive governments have made things to easy for us, and by and large, it's become far easier to abdicate personal responsibility and just blame someone else. We've changed our mindset this year, and thus far, it's working really well. We're not someone who is endowed with an iron will, and we reckon that if we can change the habits of a lifetime, pretty much anyone can.

We'll keep you posted on progress!

Caning The Standard

2012-01-29T08:35:00.000+13:00

Yesterday, The Standard published a stinging attack on Fran O'Sullivan after her piece on the Crafar farm sales. It's so nasty that we won't even dignify it with a link or an excerpt.

This morning Robert Winter from Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow takes his brethren Lefties to task; he blogs:

The Standard has launched a hyperbolic attack on Ms O'Sullivan for her support for the government's decision on the Crafar farms' bid. It is a little odd. I often disagree with Ms O'Sullivan, but she is usually consistent, and has always taken a pro free-trade and investment line. She is explicit in this, and, therefore the venom in the attack on her seems to me to be that bit manufactured. My own view is that she is defending a particular view of "national interest" (see my post yesterday), one to which I do not subscribe, but it is widely held, even, I must say, in the ranks of Labour. I doubt for, example, that Mr Goff would differ from Ms O'Sullivan's view, if push came to shove.

Redlogix should, perhaps, abstain from red meat for a week or so.

We concur. Fran O'Sullvan is employed by the Herald, among other things to write opinion-pieces, and yet when her opinion doesn't tally with one of the authors at The Standard, the nastiness and vitriol comes out.

Labour seems to be having a rethink of the role of its blog Red Alert. Perhaps they need to talk to the party activists who run The Standard, becasue the only conclusion that we can draw is that Labour's supporters have learned nothing from their crushing election result in November.

Christian Music Sunday - 29 January 2012; a Parachute special

2012-01-29T08:24:00.003+13:00

Parachute Festival is on at Mystery Creek in Hamilton this weekend. A combination of events has conspired to keep us away this year, but we're there in spirit!

So here's one of our fave Parachute moments. In 2005, American worship leader Jeff Deyo recorded a worship album live at the festival during Sunday night's worship session. Here's his signature song, captured live from Mainstage:

Have a wonderful festival Parachutees; we hope to be there next year!

What a rout

2012-01-29T07:06:00.002+13:00

The Black Caps have totally routed Zimbabwe, in the best possible start to the test cricket season. For only the third time in test cricket history, New Zealand took twenty wickets in less than a full day's play as they powered to a crushing victory.

The win by an innings and 301 runs is New Zealand's largest, and the eighth-biggest margin in history where the winning team has batted only once. And it's likely to raise questions about Zimbabwe's ability to compete at test level, especially away from home.

The Zimbabweans batted poorly yesterday; of that there is no doubt. But right from the start of their first innings, they were placed under pressure by an accurate New Zealand bowling attack, and an efficient fielding unit. It's only Zimbabwe's fourth test back since their exile from test cricket, and their first away from home, and that inexperience was ruthlessly exposed.

But let's take nothing away from the New Zealand bowlers. Veteran Chris Martin bowled superbly, knocking the top off the Zimbabwe side in both innings. His eight wickets for the match now places him alongside Christopher Cairns as New Zealand's third leading wicket-taker in tests, with 218. Martin received great support from Boult, Bracewell and Southee, and in those four New Zealand has an attack which will grow in confidence the more opportunities it has to play together.

And the bowlers were very well supported by a terrific fielding effort. Almost every chance that was offered was taken, and the sole "offender" Dean Brownlie redeemed himself with a stunning catch late in the match. Good fielding builds pressure for the bowlers, and that was well illustrated yesterday.

John Wright will be delighted by a strong team performance which bodes well for the season ahead. Let's hope that the new-look squad can play to a similar level in the shorter forms of the game which lie ahead.

And as for Zimbabwe; test cricket is a tough school. The Zimbabwe players need to learn from the lessons handed down to them in Napier over the last three days; tight bowling, disciplined batting and enthusiastic fielding. And they need to be playing test cricket, and plenty of it, even if they suffer some more big defeats along the way.

Well done New Zealand; but the next test will be tougher by far.

Quote of the Day

2012-01-28T09:10:00.004+13:00

Tracy Watkins is, like the politicians, back from her summer holiday. And she makes this astute observation to illustrate the dilemma that David Shearer is about to discover he has:

For Labour, stoking up opposition to the sale is an opportunity to set the agenda at the start of the political year. Mr Shearer's challenge is finding a way to talk over the top of Mr Peters on the issue.

Labour suffers from the disadvantage of having to be reasonable - the jingoistic NZ First leader has no such constraints. He has crusaded against foreign ownership since year dot, even from the lofty heights of foreign minister, and is also blatant about playing the anti-Asian card. He will say what Mr Shearer won't because he knows he will never have to be bound by his rhetoric.

That's ever so true. Winston Peters is the consummate Opposition politician, because he knows he will never again have to put his moeny where his mouth is, and when he HAS had to, it's always ended in tears!

The big bluff

2012-01-28T08:48:00.003+13:00

We're not great fans of celebrity weddings, or the celebrity culture itself. But we have to compliment Mike Hosking and Kate Hawkesby on their smarts. All week, the talk has been of a secret wedding on Waiheke Island this weekend, but now the Herald reports:

Newstalk ZB has confirmed the marriage of broadcasters Mike Hosking and Kate Hawkesby.

The couple wed in an intimate ceremony at Huka Lodge in Taupo on Wednesday.

A group of 30 to 40 friends and family celebrated with them.

The wedding will feature in Woman's Day, released in Auckland tomorrow and nationwide on Monday.

So good on them; they got the private wedding they wanted, and the photographers that have been hanging around on Waiheke Island will go home empty handed.

But be assured; we WON'T be buying the Woman's Day!

O'Sullivan on the Crafar farms

2012-01-28T07:21:00.002+13:00

Fran O'Sullivan has nailed here economic colours to the mast in this morning's Herald. And what she says will go down like a cup of cold sick with those who are trying to beat up the Crafar farms decision as some sort of attack on our birthright; she opines:

The Crafar decision is a victory for economic rationalism over blind xenophobic nationalism. Long may the former reign.

Instead of bowing to whipped-up public pressure (which it can't do anyway without breaking the law and marring New Zealand's international reputation), the Government has stuck to its guns and allowed due process to triumph.

The approval for the Chinese bid by John Key's government is a welcome sign that he intends to hit his stride in his second term and make the most of the economic opportunities that are available to New Zealand.

Not to run a mile the moment the xenophobes or the greenies start belting their predictable tambourines and unsettle the nervous nellies in his own caucus.

This is what we want to see more of from our Prime Minister. Not the poll-driven behaviour that (at times) played too big a part in his first term in office. Key has the opportunity to make some very bold calls in the next 18 months. His Cabinet minister's decision to run with the Overseas Investment Office's recommendation to approve the bid is the first.

"Make the most of the economic opportunities that are available to New Zealand"; isn't that what we elect governments to do? With such turmoil in the European markets at the moment, we are fortunate that Asia, and China in particular is literally on our doorstep; emerging markets, with whom we have already built trade relationships.

And the sale of the Crafar farms is all about opportunities and relationships, with mutual benefits; read on:

Key is clearly excited about the opportunities for New Zealand from the successful Chinese bid for the Crafar farms. So he should be. The Shanghai Pengxin bid has obviously been carefully constructed to ensure significant economic upside for New Zealand.

But when Chinese billionaire Jiang Zhaobai comes down to New Zealand this weekend as a prelude to writing the final cheque of $200 million his firm is putting up for the Crafar dairy farms, he will still be put on a ministerial-required 'good behaviour' bond.

In fact, the first condition the two ministers have put on the bid is that "the individuals with control of Milk New Zealand must continue to be of good character.

That individual is Jiang who has 99 per cent of the shares in the controlling vehicle.

I doubt that Jiang - who is listed as one of China's wealthiest men by Forbes magazine - has ever faced such an extraordinary up-front pre-condition before investing elsewhere in the world. But it is clearly a price the Shanghai Pengxin chairman is willing to pay to get a toe-hold in New Zealand as the first step towards expanding his footprint in the Kiwi dairy industry.

Make no mistake about it.

Despite claims by the Sir Michael Fay-led consortium that Jiang is paying too much for the 16 farms and will eventually exit from the investment, Shanghai Pengxin will, in all probability, emerge with a joint-venture with state-owned Landcorp to run the farms and pave the way for both parties to establish a thriving international dairy business.

Pengxin has pledged to co-operate in developing retail and distribution opportunities within China for high-value New Zealand dairy brands, something that is notoriously hard to do without deep pockets and on-the-ground capacity. It will also later form 50-50 joint-venture partnerships to produce more refined products here instead of simply shipping sacks of milk powder off to China.

Already NZ First, the Greens and Labour have decided that the Crafar farms sale is a sell-out, and the fast track to becoming tenants in our own land. We reject that entirely; for a start, the farms aren't "our land"; they were privately owned and run (unsuccessfully), and are now in the hands of receivers. But even worse, the abovementioned political parties are far more interested in political advantage than in long-term benefits to the New Zealand economy. And shouldn't that be the overriding concern?

And whilst O'Sullivan congratulates Key on his boldness, she makes little mention of the ultimate irony; Winston Peters by default supporting Sir Michael Fay. Have a read of this speech from Peters in Parliament in June 2007, and you'll see the dislike and distrust that Peters has for Fay. Now he'd rather see a man he refers to as "guilty as sin" lead the bid to buy the Crafar farms than a Chinese businessman who wants to partner with New Zealand. If anyone ever wondered why we have such a loathing for Winston Peters, they need look no further; he is a hypocrite and political charlatan of the worst order.

The sale of the Crafar farms to Shanghai Pengxin will, we believe, be good for New Zealand in the long term. The Overseas Investment Office has approved the sale, and the government has no reason to intervene. And that is the way it ought to be.

Classic catches

2012-01-27T17:37:00.002+13:00

The match between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal last night at the Australian Open was an absolute belter, but a ball-boy stole the show; check this out:

That's a grab that any slips fieldsman would be proud of!

Stand by for the outpouring..

2012-01-27T11:40:00.004+13:00

It's just been announced that the sale of the Crafar farms to Chinese interests has been approved; the Herald reports:

The Chinese Government-backed Shanghai Pengxin bid for the 16 Crafar farms has been approved.

Land Information Minster maurice Williamson and Associate Finance Minister Jonathan Coleman today announced that they have accepted the recommendation of the Overseas investment Office to accept the bid from Pengxin.

In a release just published, the ministers said that it was clear that all criteria under sections 16 and 18 of the Overseas Investment Act were met.

"We are satisfied that Milk New Zealand's application for consent meets the criteria set out in the Act," said Coleman.

See the OIO decision here.

The approval follows the receivers, KordaMentha's acceptance in late 2010 of Milk New Zealand's bid for the farms.

"Milk New Zealand's acquisition will further support the supply of high quality dairy products into the Chinese market and help set the foundations for further economic and export opportunities with China," said the Government.

"Stringent conditions policed by the OIO will ensure that Milk New Zealand's investment delivers substantial and identifiable benefits to New Zealand."
"These include investing more than $14m into the farms making them more economically and environmentally sustainable; protecting the Nga Herenga and the Te Ruaki pa sites and improving walking access to the Pureora Forest Park and Te Rere falls. An on-farm training facility for dairy farm workers will also be established."

It hasn't been a good week for the left-leaning blogs. Firstly, Ernst and Young exposed the misinformation that MUNZ has tried to spread. Then the Auckland council got rid of the Occupy protesters, and Penny Bright paid a visit to the cells. And now there's this.

As we said earlier, if you have sensitive eyes and ears, you might wish to take precautions. The Left is about to shriek in indignation again, aided and abetted by Winston Peters, the Clown Prince of Xenophobia.

And in the meantime, someone might like to ask David Shearer why it was ok for the previous government to sell 650,000 hectares of New Zealand land (the Crafar sale involves 8000 hectares) to purchasers from a variety of nationalities, but why the Chinese purchasers of the Crafar farms are unwelcome. We'd love to hear his answer.

UPDATE: This graphic from DPF shows the relationship of the land which comprises the 16 Crafar farms compared to the land which was sold during the time of the Clark administration.

Do you still want to go down the "tenants in our own land" road Mr Shearer?

Give us strength!

2012-01-27T11:10:00.002+13:00

Sonny Bill Williams is back in the news; Stuff reports:

All Black heartthrob Sonny Bill Williams has a new girlfriend - the daughter of another sports star.

Williams,26, has been seeing Aucklander Jaime Ridge, the teenage daughter of former league star Matthew and his ex-wife Sally.

The pair have been seeing each other for about three weeks and have been spotted out together. They have reportedly spent time together in Auckland where Ridge lives, and in Hamilton where Williams plays Super 14 rugby for the Chiefs.

But then comes the bit that gives cause to the heading of this thread; read on (with our emphasis added):

"They're both very publicity shy and it's very early days for the relationship, but they have been spotted together on a regular basis," a source said.

Whatever. Sonny Bill Williams may be many things, but publicity shy isn't one of them. He lives his life in the media, and the media makes a significant contribution to his lifestyle, via the efforts of his manager Khoder Nasser. Williams appears in a number of television commercials and publicity campaigns, and even his foray into boxing is designed to enhance the SBW "brand". So don't tell us that he shies away from publicity.

And Miss Ridge is hardly a shrinking violet either. Her parents are regulars in the women's magazines, and she herself is no stranger to the media, as the Stuff story notes:

She is a regular in the social pages with mum Sally, and recently featured in a Metro magazine photo shoot of Auckland celebrities.

She has done some modelling work, including at last year's Fashion Week where she modelled a lingerie creation designed by her mother.

So how about a bit of honesty please Stuff. In all probability, this has been carefully released to the media so don't give us the "They're both very publicity shy" nonsense, because it simply doesn't wash.

Farewell; it's been brilliant!

2012-01-27T09:14:00.008+13:00

Fear not; we're not going anywhere. But hundreds of vintage and classic cars, and their owners will be leaving Wanganui this morning at the conclusion of the Vintage Car Club of NZ's International Rally 2012.

VCC 2012 has been an overwhelming success. Even the weather played ball, with only some brief rain on Sunday afternoon. It is, however, bucketing down this morning as the cars hit the road; an expression of sadness from above, perhaps!

The people of Wanganui fully embraced this event, which will be long remembered. Around 30,000 turned out on Sunday to an Open Day at the Wanganui Racecourse where all the cars in the rally were on display. Vintage cars parked in the main street of the city, at supermarkets, petrol stations and shops have become a common sight, and a perfect fit with Wanganui's heritage theme.

And to say "thanks" to the people of the city, the cars split into three groups on Wednesday night, and ventured out to the suburbs where they were met by hundreds of people of the roadsides throughout Wanganui. It was a wonderful gesture by the rally organisers, and was warmly received.

We've interspersed this thread with a few photos we took on Sunday, but most of the memories we'll have of this last ten days will be in the mind's eye; it's been fantastic seeing history on display, and so lovingly restored.

And lastly, here's a comment from a visitor, sent to Cr Jack Bullock, Wanganui's youngest councillor:

I have just returned home to Christchurch after having spent a week in Wanganui. I was there for the VCC Rally and what a week it was. I thoroughly enjoyed it. More importantly I love your city and think it has many under rated attractions. I fell in love with your main street Victoria Avenue and I think your gardens are delightful. The people were so nice and friendly. I was pleasantly surprised by the value of property in the region and am seriously considering moving up there as Christchurch is never going to be the same or remotely as good as your city from the cultural side. I am retired and want to spend the rest of my days in a city that is complete.

Just keep up the good work and encourage people to continue to take a pride in what they have achieved and what they can improve on in the future.

We've thoroughly enjoyed VCC 2012 as well, and we weren't even directly involved! It's got 2012 off to the best possible start for a city that is too often in the headlines for the wrong reasons.

Fifty years on

2012-01-27T08:11:00.003+13:00

It's an important anniversary for Wanganui today. It's fifty years to the day since the great Peter Snell established himself as a miler of international quality when he broke the world mile record on the grass track at Cooks Gardens.

Last Sunday, the Herald on Sunday carried a lengthy piece about that famous night. We've held it back until today; the actual anniversary; here's how it began:

For Sir Murray Halberg, it was a night tinged with death and sadness. For Peter Snell, it was the moment he realised he wasn't just an 800m runner.

For athletics official (and an athlete himself) Toby Bowyer, it was a time when the police detective didn't mind suffering 'grievous bodily harm' at the hands of jubilant coach Arthur Lydiard.

For Nick Willis, Wanganui's Cooks Gardens has a special significance too - which is why he is the star turn at Friday's track meeting there to celebrate Snell's world mile record set on January 27, 1962.

That night, a menacing black cloud hung over Wanganui. Outside the town, rain pelted down and threatened to put a dampener on the Agfa International Athletic Meeting. But at Cooks Gardens, apart from that cloud, the evening was still and perfect.

"It was almost an eerie thing," recalls Sir Murray Halberg, who was trying to warm up for the programme's feature race under the weight of some tragic news.

The reigning Olympic 5000m champion had promised to help his mate Snell become the first man to break four minutes for the mile in New Zealand.
The pair, both coached by the legendary Lydiard, had already contributed a unique piece of Kiwi sporting history, winning gold medals within an hour of each other at the 1960 Rome Olympics.

Halberg held the national mile record at 3m 57.5s, achieved in the same race that Australian Herb Elliott had set the existing world mark in Dublin four years earlier. Now he was expected to help break his own record.

But Halberg was struggling with the revelation that a training buddy had died on the trip south from Auckland. Popular Owairaka athlete Peter Hitchens had drowned while swimming off Foxton Beach.

"Whenever I think about that night, I think about Peter Hitchens," reflects Sir Murray. "He was a middle distance runner, a typical enthusiastic harrier and a good club member. I heard about his death before the race but I don't think we told Peter [Snell] until afterwards."

Out on the track, Toby Bowyer was checking and re-checking the markings. As clerk of the course, his job was to ensure the circuit was correctly laid out and, if records were broken, that task would become doubly important.

"I had to make sure everything was running right and all the pegs were in the right place," explains Bowyer, a detective at the time. "It was all surveyed beforehand and right up to scratch."

In the book Peter Snell: From Olympian to Scientist (2007), written by Garth Gilmour, Snell would describe the grass surface as bare in patches and not particularly beautiful, "but as a running surface in the conditions that prevailed, it was excellent".

The gathering crowd of 15,000 was expecting something special. While Snell, then 23, fully expected to better four minutes and perhaps challenge Halberg's national record, he was annoyed to find Lydiard had predicted a time of 3m 55s in the local paper.

"If I did end up running well inside four minutes, I preferred it to be something better than expected," he said later.

It was a magical night for Sir Peter Snell, and for the thousands who turned out to watch the event. And it was replayed in 1992 when a re-run was staged, and all the surviving athletes returned to Wanganui to run the race again. Naturally, Peter Snell won!

There's a big athletics meeting in Wanganui tonight to celebrate Snell's achievemnt, and his inextricable link with the River City. Unfortunately, Snell himself won't be there, but American runner Bruce Tulloh will be; he ran second to Snell on that famous January night.

And although there's no longer a grass track at Cooks Gardens, Olympic silver medallist Nick Willis will run tonight, and he too has strong links to the venue; his father was there on 27 January 1962, and Willis himself holds the fastest mile time on the new Cooks Gardens track; 3:52.75.

We might just have to wander down to Cooks Gardens tonight, and celebrate the achievement of an athlete who can truly be described as one of the greats.

The Friday Forum - 27 January 2012

2012-01-27T07:17:00.002+13:00

It's Friday again; the final Friday of the first month of 2012; the year is literally disappearing before our eyes! And for those in the northern half of the North Island, it will doubtless be a well-received long weekend, being Auckland Anniversary Day on Monday.

But let's get through Friday first; the Friday Forum is the place to come to just let off steam, or have a rant about your pet hobby-horse. You set the agenda here.

Welcome aboard; the floor is yours...

A leaky Caption Contest

2012-01-26T16:38:00.003+13:00

We haven't had a Caption Contest for a while. But when we saw the image below on a couple of blogs, it just seemed like the perfect opportunity:

You know the ropes; what state secrets may John Key and John Banks be exchanging? Keep 'em brief, pithy, and most of all, amusing.

Go on; you know you want to...

A policeman's lot...

2012-01-26T14:09:00.003+13:00

According to Gilbert and Sullivan, a policeman's lot is not a happy one, especially when constabulary's duty is to be done. And we doubt that the officers who attended Aotea Square this morning to evict the remaining officers found it a particularly pleasant experience.

Veteran protestor Penny Bright was among the 20 or so people arrested at Aotea Square today. And 3News happened to have a camera on hand as the arrest was effected; you can watch the action at this link.

There will no doubt be accusations from the occupiers and their mates that the police action was heavy-handed. The allegation of police brutality is an easy one to make, but on the basis of the video evidence there the police showed commendable restraint in dealing with Ms Bright who was assailing them with a shrieked potted summary of her previous police record, and of the ills of corporate greedies. Lesser trained and disciplined people may well have been provoked by the haranguing the police were receiving, but these officers operated firmly and professionally.

And so the occupation of Aotea Square is over, and already work has begun to make good the damage caused to a civic amenity by Ms Bright and her fellow occupiers. And the question must be asked; have they actually achieved anything?

We think not.

Leaky teapot

2012-01-26T12:18:00.002+13:00

The infamous "teapot tape" has been leaked online; the Herald reports:

The teapot tape has been leaked online.

The infamous recording of the conversation between John Key and John Banks at a Newmarket cafe was uploaded just hours ago.

Meanwhile over at Kiwiblog, DPF comments on the leak, the source, and the possible legal consequences:

A copy of the teapot tape has been placed online, and the link e-mailed to a huge number of people from an anon e-mail address.

There are a very small number of people who have that file. Bradley Ambrose and the senior staff of the Herald on Sunday and TV3. Will any of them be brave enough to admit they did it? I will say I don’t think it is anyone from the Herald on Sunday. To be fair to them, they didn’t publish the tape originally, and it was TV3 that turned it into a daily circus.

I said before the election it was inevitable it would come out at some stage.

The recording is on You Tube (uploaded by 2Johns2Cups), plus two other locations. I’m not providing a direct link due to the questionable legality, but I do not believe saying where it has been published (as I have done) makes me a publisher, anymore than when newspapers reported Whale Oil had broken a suppression order (which sent everyone off to his site).

The irony is that the recording is quite benign, as the PM has said. The media beat this up into a nonsense, that just lowered their standing with most New Zealanders.

We won't be providing a link either, and will delete any post which attempts to provide one given, as DPF says the "questionable legality". The 2011 General Election has been and gone, and it's far too far away to the 2014 version for the leaking of the tape today to make any material difference. In fact, we speculate that when people hear the contents, they'll wonder what all the fuss was about.

Right; time to make a REAL cup of tea and have some lunch!

On yer bike occupiers!

2012-01-26T07:40:00.003+13:00

Breakfast is reporting that Auckland council officials, backed by a large contingent of police are evicting the stragglers from Aoatea Square.

That's good news; we'll update as more information becomes available.

UPDATE: Stuff reports:

Police and security guards have returned to Auckland's Aotea Square this morning, removing gear belonging to Occupy protesters.

At least 30 officers were at the site and had formed a perimeter around the protesters, who were taking down their tents.

About eight tents had been taken down, leaving four remaining, and security guards were taking down the fence.

One man in a hooded sweatshirt tried to stop security guards taking his couch, yelling "That's my property".

He was surrounded by several security guards, who then started removing his tent.

Protesters yelled "assault" and "willful damage" as the tent ripped and the man tried to stop it being taken.

They vowed to stay in Aotea Square.

Once again, get ready for an outpouring of venom from the Left, especially if Penny Bright gets arrested.

The Wonderful Days of Summer...

2012-01-26T06:33:00.002+13:00

Test cricket is an integral part of our New Zealand summer. And it's been a while since the Black Caps' gutsy win in Hobart; we've had to satisfy our love of cricket by watching a one-sided test series from Australia, supplemented by a plethora of T20 cricket from both sides of the Tasman; described by James Stephenson as cricket for those with short attention spans.

But REAL cricket returns to New Zealand today with the start of the one-off test match against Zimbabwe in Napier. The Zimbabweans are returning from test cricket exile, but have already shown some signs of promise, and test cricket is better for their presence. The skipper Brendan Taylor has spent the summer in New Zealand, and his will be a crucial wicket for the New Zealand bowlers. It will take time for Zimbabwe to develop depth at the top level, but they will be a good opponent for a New Zealand side which has played little more than T20 cricket for six weeks or so.

The New Zealanders have asked for a bouncy, green McLean Park pitch, and it seems as if they have go their wish. The bowling attack will be the same as that which bowled Australia out twice in Hobart, with Daniel Vettori in support, replacing Jesse Ryder. Ross Taylor's first job today is to win the toss so that the Black Caps can have a go at their opponents in bowler-friendly conditions.

We have a few reservations over the decision to play Vettori as a #6 batsman. His best batting has come from the #8 position, and playing him that high in the order leaves a long tail if the top order does not fire. There will be pressure aplenty on the top five of Guptill, McCullum, Williamson, Taylor and Brownlie, especially given their lack of long innings in recent weeks.

New Zealand has never won a test match at Napier, probably due to the benign McLean Park pitch. An all-round team effort will be required if they are to break their duck over the next five days. It just so happens that we have work to do from home today, so we'll be looking forward to the start of play later this morning. It'll be great to see test cricket being played here, even if it is but an entree to the South African series which follows.

The Fiji floods

2012-01-25T11:55:00.000+13:00

Just a few months ago we spent a wonderful few days in Denerau, Fiji. Now the western side of Fiji's main island is being devastated by floods after days of torrential rain. Stuff reports:

Fiji's major tourist town of Nadi is under a 6pm to 6am curfew as severe flooding continues to hammer the western part of the nation.

The death toll in nearly a week of torrential rain remains at two, Fiji's Ministry of Information said in its latest bulletin.

The man-made resort island of Denarau has been cut off, forcing some guests with plane connections to fly by helicopter the nine kilometres to the international airport at Nadi.

The ministry says no hotels have been harmed in the flooding and adds "no complaints have been registered".

Forty nine evacuation centres are holding 1056 people.

The urban areas of Nadi, Ba, Lautoka, Rakiraki and Sigatoka have been by the deep tropical depression to the east of Fiji.

"To ensure security and safety of the central business districts for all towns and cities the enforcement of restriction of movement is now enforced to ensure the maintenance of security, safety and confidence to the business communities," the ministry says.

"This restriction of movement will end when flood waters subside and business returns to normal."

The statement says food security is being monitored as shops and farms are hit but adds "there is no current threat to existing supplies".

"The police had been monitoring the high-risk areas and the general public had been advised not to cross flooded roads and crossings and to stay indoors."

The aspect of Fiji that left the biggest impression on us was the friendliness of Fijians. Our thoughts and prayers are with them as the rains continue to pour down, and their livelihoods are threatened.

Remanded in custody..

2012-01-25T11:30:00.002+13:00

In breaking news, Kim Dotcom has been remanded in custody pending an extradition hearing; the Herald reports:

Internet multimillionaire Kim Dotcom has been declined bail.

The German businessman, a resident in New Zealand, is accused of being at the centre of a computer piracy empire through Megaupload, a website business he co-founded.

Judge David McNaughton delivered his decision at the North Shore District Court today in front of a packed public gallery.

The reasons for the decision have not yet been released and he has been remanded in custody until next month.

Doubtless there will be a fresh round now of "Yes he's guilty"/"No he's not", but we reckon that Judge David McNaughton has made the correct, conservative decision. Our bail laws are soon to be overhauled (thank goodness), and comparisons to Dotcom and his co-accused remaining in custody whilst accused murderers are bailed (and we disagree with that too!) are not, in our ever-humble opinion, especially relevant.

The Pup and Punter show

2012-01-25T09:14:00.005+13:00

The fourth and thankfully final cricket test began in Adelaide yesterday. We had looked forward to this series with a degree of anticipation, but only one team has fronted.

And there was more of the same yesterday as the final test began on the flattest of flat Adelaide Oval pitches, which used to be tended by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon. Australia won the toss and chose to bat. India must have felt some hope when they had Australia 31-2 and then later 84-3. But that was it for the visitors, as Cricinfo reports:

Michael Clarke knew when he won the toss that this Adelaide Oval pitch would be perfect for batting. As the team's No.5, he wasn't expecting to be in before lunch. When he and Ricky Ponting came together in the opening session, Australia were 3 for 84. It wasn't quite precarious, but nor was it secure. By stumps, they were 3 for 335. Clarke and Ponting both had hundreds. It was Australia Day, 48 hours early.

On a day when the temperature hit 37C, the Indians were down on energy and, by stumps, they were down on hope. The series was already lost, but this match was a chance to regain some respect. For a session, it appeared they were going to do that. Of course, if the pitch remains this good, Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar and Co might also fill their boots, but first they'll need to get through Australia.

Already the Ponting-Clarke partnership had swollen to 251, and was reminiscent of their 288-run stand at the SCG earlier this month. That partnership was followed by an even better triple-century stand between Clarke and Michael Hussey. The captain MS Dhoni was unable to find a way to break through that combination, and he might have been glad of his suspension for slow over rates as he watched Sehwag struggle with a similar scenario in Adelaide.

Not that India didn't have their chances. On 36, Clarke chased a wide delivery from Ishant Sharma and edged to where first slip should have been, but Sehwag had the fielder floating at second slip instead. So early in an Adelaide Test it was a strange field setting. Not long after, Sehwag removed the slips entirely. How he intended to find a wicket was anyone's guess.

Shortly before stumps, Ishant again found the edge against Clarke, on 133 at the time, with the second new ball. This time there were two slips in, but VVS Laxman at second could not cling on diving to his right. It would be understandable to be exhausted in mind and body at the end of a long, hot day, but India simply needed every half-chance to be taken.

By the close, Clarke was on 140 and had overtaken Ponting, who flew out of the blocks before settling in throughout the afternoon and went to stumps on 137. It was Ponting's second century of the series, and unless he makes a surprise retirement announcement, he will be on the plane to the West Indies for Australia's next Test tour in April.

It was indeed a batting masterclass from Michael "Pup" Clarke and Ricky "Punter" Ponting yesterday. Both players scored runs all around the ground, and with an ease that suggested that Australia was playing one of the worst-ranked test sides, not the #3-ranked team, and ICC World Champions.

There will be more of the same today, without doubt. Double centuries beckon for both Clarke and Ponting, as Australia looks to build a massive first innings score and bat the Indians out of the match. The only question remaining will be whether or not the Indians are in a good enough head-space to cash in on the best batting conditions of their tour. That no Indian player has yet registered three figures in an innings during this season is telling; it's hard to escape the conclusion that the Indians are present in body, but absent in mind.

And just so we're spoiled for choice, the test match between New Zealand and Zimbabwe begins in Napier tomorrow. Let's hope that it is a little more competitive than the offerings we've been served up from Australia since Boxing Day.

In the interests of transparency

2012-01-25T06:20:00.004+13:00

The Maritime Union has responded to the Ernst and Young audit of Ports of Auckland wage figures. Its media release begins:

The Maritime Union has criticized the circulation of a “fact sheet” produced for the Ports of Auckland Limited (POAL) management that repeats incorrect information.

Maritime Union of New Zealand National President Garry Parsloe says not only is the “fact sheet” misleading, but it is a symptom of a deeply politicized management who need to be brought under control by the ports shareholders.

Mr Parsloe says the document produced by Ernst and Young indicates that management are now engaged in an expensive and unaccountable public relations war against their own employees, funded by Auckland ratepayers.

He says the Ports of Auckland Limited do not have this new fact sheet obviously available on their own corporate website [as of 9pm 24 January 2012], but it has appeared during the day on various right wing blogs including National Party affiliated individuals in what appears to be a political campaign by senior managers at the Port.

Mr Parsloe says the Ernst and Young produced fact sheet repeats the misinformation propagated by POAL management.

Unsurprisingly, MUNZ does not accept the numbers furnished by PoAL, and verified by Ernst and Young. Interestingly though, there is no mention of the $56,000 per annum,which MUNZ has consistently claimed to be the average income of its members. Has MUNZ decided that there is no way that people will believe that particular number any more, and abandoned the pretence?

We link to this media release in the interests of transparency. And it's now an issue of credibility; do you take the word of a militant trade union, backed into a corner by its strike tactics having failed and now facing huge job losses? Or do you take the word of one of the world's Big Four accountancy firms, which has a professional reputation to maintain?

Sheesh; that's a difficult choice...

So much for MUNZ's numbers...

2012-01-24T15:05:00.006+13:00

The credibility of the Maritime Union takes another dent; check this out:

Ports of Auckland Fact Sheet - Ernst and Young

It's an Audit Report from Ernst and Young, which validates the earnings figures for stevedores at the Ports of Auckland Limited which were released by the company a couple of weeks ago.

The independant audit should put an end once and for all to MUNZ's claims as to the average earnings of its members. Sadly for MUNZ, it seems as though its membership numbers are about to dip as low as its credibility, as PoAL moves to contract out steverdoring services.

Hat-tip: Whale Oil

Don't drink and drive...

2012-01-24T12:42:00.002+13:00

The Herald reports:

Shocked police have issued safety warnings after finding several mothers breastfeeding while driving in a recent road blitz.

Operation Safe Kids ran from January 9 to 19 in response to a recent spate of serious crashes involving children who were passengers.

Officers stopped and spoke to three mothers who were caught breast feeding their infants while driving a vehicle on the motorway.

Auckland Motorways Manager Inspector Shanan Gray says his officers were shocked.

"It puts everyone in an extremely dangerous situation. If they had to stop their vehicle suddenly, or they were involved in a serious crash, the infant would surely be ejected from the vehicle," he said.

Mr Gray said police were also stunned to find small children travelling in vehicle boots or footwells.

Breastfeeding is great. But while driving? It's hard to believe that any parent who cares enough about their child's start to life to breastfeed would put their child's life at risk by driving while doing it.

How?

2012-01-24T08:18:00.005+13:00

The Kim Dotcom saga grows more and more mysterious. The Dom-Post reports on international media interest in the bail hearing yesterday, before going on to this interesting exchange:

When the hearing finally began, only Dotcom was dealt with. Sitting in a chair seeming far too small for his black-clothed bulk, the 37-year-old sat quietly for most of the day, smirking occasionally when his lawyer made a good point.

A grin almost slipped out when Mr Davison, in summing up, described his final reason why Dotcom should be set free:

"It won't escape the court's notice that Mr Dotcom is a man with a distinct [look], he's not the kind of man who is going to pass unnoticed through controls and checks without being readily identifiable."

The arguments centred around several main points – listed by Crown lawyer Anne Toohey as Dotcom's lack of respect for authorities, ready access to wealth, multiple aliases, access to a firearm, access to transport and alleged likelihood of reoffending.
Ms Toohey described how Dotcom had several passports – Finnish, New Zealand, German – in different names.

He also had multiple credit cards, all discovered in the raid. There were six in one wallet, 19 in another and 10 in another. These were all in a variety of names, including using the first name "Tim" rather than Kim, she said.

Mr Davison counter-argued that his client "collected" the cards, and they were of no consequence.

35 credit cards just "collected"? Apart from being a recipe for disaster if his wife stumbled over them, Mr Davison's argument sounds like the stuff of a Tui billboard.

But it's the passport that's really made our antennae buzz. Mr Dotcom was only granted New Zealand residence in 2010. There has been no mention made of him being a New Zealand citizen. So how on earth does he have a New Zealand passport? The Department of Internal Affairs website clearly states that applicants MAY be eligible if they:

were physically present in New Zealand, and have had your New Zealand permanent residence for the last five years before applying for citizenship.

Surely, this is the first question that must be answered before bail is even contemplated for Kim Dotcom.

The secret diary of...

2012-01-24T07:03:00.002+13:00

David Shearer is the latest "victim" of Steve Braunias; here's a couple of day's worth:

MONDAY

Back to work. Good. It's going to be an exciting year, and I can't wait to get started.

Stirred my cup of tea for two hours. It had got cold. Boiled the jug and made another cup. I learned from my mistake, and stopped stirring it after an hour and 45 minutes. It had still got cold.

Sorted it out eventually, but by then I didn't feel like a cup of tea.

Turned to my new chief of staff, and said to him, "I'm raring to go!" He said, "Go where?" I said, "Home. It's nearly five o'clock."

TUESDAY

My new chief of staff brought in an unfamiliar document.

I said, "What is it?" He said, "It's a newspaper." He suggested I read the latest column by political commentator Chris Trotter.

I said, "I love his show on National Radio on Sunday mornings. It's very relaxing."

He said, "No, that's Chris Laidlaw."

Trotter's column wasn't very relaxing. It demanded that I get off the fence and take a stand alongside locked-out workers at the Port of Auckland.

It's hard to take Trotter seriously.

He's Left-wing.

Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction...

UPDATED: Speaking of occupations ending...

2012-01-23T10:05:00.004+13:00

UPDATE: Len Brown has commented publicly on today's developments via Facebook:

Len Brown
As you may have read today, Auckland Council has removed tents and other paraphernalia being used by the remaining Occupy Auckland campers.

I remain committed to defending the right of all our citizens to free speech.

I will however not condone illegal camping in parks that our citizens want returned to them.

What say Penny Bright, Martyn Bradbury, John Minto, Sue Bradford, 'arry 'awke and Old Uncle Tom Cobley and all now?

*****************************

We've just blogged about the imminent demise of Occupy Wellington. And now we see that the actual demise of Occupy Auckland is underway; Stuff reports:

More police are arriving at Aotea Square as the eviction of Occupy Auckland protesters escalates.
The protesters are being evicted from four sites around the city by Auckland Council this morning after 101 days of protesting.

Police, security guards and council staff are forcibly removing the protesters' tents, and they have retaliated by occupying the security guards' vans.

Officers have arrested two of the protesters - a man and a woman - after a struggle.

The pair were being held in a police van, which was being guarded by 15 officers. They could be heard loudly banging the inside of the van.

There are more than 30 police officers on the scene.

Flustered protester Merlin Blackmore said the situation was "developing rapidly" at Aotea Square.

"Police are physically removing a protester from a van who is protecting his gear... they are physically grabbing him right now, they are being quite vigorous."

He then shouted at officers in the background.

"What is with this assault? Protect and serve the people. You're a disgrace, you're a slave. You're a f------ disgrace.

"They're assaulting people."

An Auckland Council spokesman said the council had issued warrants under a new bylaw preventing overnight camping and protesters' gear was being removed from sites including Aotea Square, Albert Park and Victoria Park.

The Auckland council has been exceedingly patient with the illegal occupation of Aotea Square, but it became clear that the patience was wearing thin when council successfully sought a Court order prior to Christmas. Now it would seem that the council is embarking on a new tactic.

If your ears are sensitive, the it may pay to take precautions. Severe shrilling is about to start, beginning with the likes of Penny Bright and her ilk. From there it will spread to the blogosphere, where the likes of Martyn Bradbury, Idiot/Savant and the various authors from The Standard will again call Len Brown a traitor to the working class which elected him. You have been warned!

We'll maintain a watching brief over this eviction, and the inevitable outpouring of venom. But in our ever-humble opinion, the Auckland council's action today is justifiable, albeit long overdue.

A prophetic headline?

2012-01-23T09:57:00.002+13:00

The online version of the Dom-Post has this headline:

Occupiers mark 100 days

There's just one catch; when you follow the link, this is what you get:

Page not found

Sorry the page you are looking for no longer exists.

- Try searching by entering keyword(s) into the search box above

- or visit the homepage.

- or use the sitemap below

If you continue to have problems please contact us.

Could it be that, like the webpage that "no longer exists", the Occupy movement in New Zealand is in its death throes? We think that someone at Fairfax either has a dark sense of humour, or is gifted in the prophetic word!

Has hell frozen over?

2012-01-23T07:17:00.003+13:00

We know it's cold this morning, but could it be so cold that hell has frozen over?

Why would we be asking this? Well, it seems that this morning, we agree with both Winston Peters AND Darien Fenton on something! Stuff reports:

Calls are growing for an inquiry into how a German millionaire convicted of insider-trading and now accused of internet piracy was able to settle in New Zealand, as he prepares a bid for freedom.

File-sharing king Kim Dotcom, 37, was taken by armed police from his Auckland mansion on Friday alongside three others accused in the "Mega Conspiracy" case, an FBI-led operation into copyright conspiracy.

The men, including another New Zealand resident, Bram van der Kolk, 29, of the Netherlands, will reappear in North Shore District Court today to apply for bail.

Although the accused do not face charges in New Zealand, the country is helping the FBI and the United States Government with the arrests and extradition.

The men's hearing comes as Opposition politicians call for accountability into Dotcom's status as a resident. Although the overweight, flamboyant former hacker – who legally changed his name to Dotcom from Shmitz – had convictions from his native Germany, he was able to settle in Auckland after investing $10 million in New Zealand government bonds in 2010.

Those bonds are now part of the assets frozen by authorities investigating the charges against Megaupload – which include racketeering, money laundering and copyright infringements.

NZ First leader Winston Peters called for the prime minister to set up an immediate inquiry into how Dotcom was allowed to stay permanently in Auckland, where he lived in a $30 million mansion belonging to the Chrisco enterprise founders.

"It has been reported that Dotcom is known in Germany as a notorious computer hacker and has been convicted of insider trading, yet immigration authorities let him settle here under the so-called investor-plus category. The prime minister should order an immediate inquiry ... to see who was involved in this immigration scandal and ensure that it doesn't happen again."

Labour immigration spokeswoman Darien Fenton said that before there was an inquiry, it should be asked whose responsibility it was to allow the discretion to overlook his convictions.
The "investor-plus" category Dotcom's residency fell into needed to be looked at to ensure others of "dubious" character were not also able to bypass the good character test, she said.

In a statement, the Immigration Service said that "Mr Dotcom made full disclosure of his previous convictions and they were taken into account in the granting of his residence. The Immigration Act allows for discretion to be exercised in certain cases. In this particular case, Immigration NZ weighed the character issue and any associated risk to New Zealand against potential benefits to New Zealand".

In a past life, we were involved in the immigration industry, so it's an area where we have some interest and a little knowledge, which can of course be a dangerous thing. But we agree that questions need to be asked as to whether the proper protocols were followed, and if a waiver was granted, by whom.

We are only too aware that this could be embarrassing for the National government, but that's irrelevant. If proper procedures were not followed, then action needs to be taken to ensure that there is no repeat. And if a politician made the decision to grant a waiver, then that person must take the rap.

In the meantime Dotcom and his cronies appear in Court again today. Given that he has already retained the services of a high-profile defence lawyer in the USA, we suspect his time in New Zealand may be brief.

And as for the troubling business of agreeing with Winston and Darien, we reassure readers that this is a one-off, on this issue alone. After all, Winston Peters still owes the taxpayer $158,000, doesn't he!

Happy Anniversary Wellington

2012-01-23T07:04:00.002+13:00

It's Wellington Anniversary Day today. And because the powers-that-beway back when included everything up to Wanganui (on this side of the island) in the greater Wellington province, we celebrate with the capital city.

And true to form, the overnight rain has moved out, but there's a fresh southerly blowing, and it's decidedly cool this morning. But it looks like it's going to be a pretty reasonable sort of a day, especially as we don't have to go to work!

So to our readers outside the Wellington province; enjoy work or whatever today, as we enjoy a day's respite. Of course the tables will be turned next Monday when the Auckland province grinds to a halt, and then we can all have a holiday the following Monday for Waitangi Day!

Hypocrisy alert of the day...

2012-01-22T19:23:00.004+13:00

Matt McCarten writes in today's Herald on Sunday (with our emphasis added):

Twice as many children grow up in poor families now than in the 1970s and 80s, so the disparity will get even worse.

The solution to the poverty gap is for the state to raise enough taxes to fund schools, hospitals and housing. Then have economic policies and industrial laws that aim to create high-waged jobs.

Here's a question for you Matt; don't you think it would have HELPED the government if a certain union paid the PAYE it had deducted from its staff, instead of withholding tax payments for a period of 18 months?

Matt McCarten may be the darling of the media when a left-biased opinion is required. But as a serial tax withholder, he is entirely the wrong person to preach about the state's efforts to "raise enough taxes to fund schools, hospitals and housing". He is part of the problem, not the solution; a tax hypocrite.

A question for Len

2012-01-22T16:30:00.003+13:00

Robert Winter from Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow has a question for Len Brown; he blogs:

It is a simple one, requiring a "yes" or "no" answer. Will he allow POAL to make redundant its workforce and contract out its staff?

I'm sure that anyone who has more than a passing interest in the Mexican stand-off between PoAL and the MUNZ would be interested in the answer to this question. At the end of the day however, we wonder whether it's all academic, and whether the Mayor has any say in the operating decisions of a council-owned company.

It would be interesting to know too what other elected Auckland officials think; Cr Cathy Casey, Cr Penny Hulse, Cr Cameron Brewer, and our old Manawatu compatriot Cr George Wood to name but four. If any of these, or other Auckland councillors happen to read this, feel free to leave a comment.

In the meantime, we'll keep an eye out on Idle Thoughts lest Len Brown answers, or lest Robert Winter feels compelled to repeat the question.

Quelle surprise!

2012-01-22T07:58:00.004+13:00

Stuff reports on the Turangi teenager:

The teenager who raped a five-year-old girl in a Turangi holiday park has gang connections.

The Sunday Star-Times has been told the 16-year-old, who has pleaded guilty to the attack, was motivated by the possibility of securing entry into a gang.

Because of the suppression orders around the case, the gang cannot be named.

The Star-Times understands the teen's father had been associated with the gang, but not since the attack, which shocked New Zealand in the lead-up to Christmas. The boy's father cannot be named for legal reasons.

The claims were made by several sources close to the investigation.

"The family and the boy are connected to a gang," one said. "The family is gang-associated. It's not just the father."

Another source said: "The family are well-recognised as being what they are ... rotten apples. Where are you heading in society when you have this underbelly?"

Now, if one had been reading the papers after the attack, it was widely reported that a certain gang was having a party in a nearby park on the night this attack took place. To suppress the gang's name is pretty futile, but we will abide by the suppression order. But we'll also add that this particular gang has a long history of sexual violence towards women, and more recently of violence to children. 'Huff said.

So the revelations of whanau gang connections come as no surprise whatsoever. And people wonder why we here at Keeping Stock abhor gangs...

An interesting follow...

2012-01-22T07:31:00.002+13:00

We got an e-mail from Twitter last night; look who's following us:

Maritime Union NZ @maritimeunion is now following you (@Inventory2).

maritimeunion Maritime Union NZ

Representing New Zealand maritime workers since 2002. Authorized by Joe Fleetwood, 220 Willis Street, Wellington.

New Zealand

We can only guess tht someone in MUNZ has decided that it's time to monitor social media and see what the people are saying. This could be fun!

Why do they bother?

2012-01-21T16:01:00.005+13:00

Occupy Auckland seems to have run its course; Stuff reports:

An anti-capitalist movement that stormed Aotea Square three months ago has fizzled to just a few dozen hearty protesters.
About 60 protesters marked the 99th day of protest action by marching up Auckland's Queen Street today.

This is a far cry from the 2000 anti-capitalist protesters who marched on Aotea Square on October 15.

Occupy protesters oppose corporate greed and one of their rallying cries is: "We are the 99 per cent."

Those marching up Queen St agreed the number of protesters had dwindled, but were adamant the protest movement would survive.

"It might ebb and flow but it certainly has not fizzled out. It may appear fizzled, but it will re-emerge," protestor Keith Henderson said.

Their movement had achieved public awareness of the failings of capitalism over the past 99 days, he said.

Protester Daniel Harvey said the occupation attracted more protesters in the early stages as it was still fresh. "We're trying to revive it."

But some shoppers were a little miffed by the anti-capitalist protest.

"I'm all for finding places to live which are reasonably priced. But by the look of them [protestors], they do not have a job to pay the rent," a female shopper said.

Really; you have to wonder why they bother.

Dotcom questions

2012-01-21T12:19:00.004+13:00

The arrest yesterday of Megauploads head honcho Kim Dotcom and some of his cronies set tongues and Twitter wagging. Not surprisingly, Idiot/Savant from No Right Turn was outraged that the NZ Police was arresting "Kiwis" on behalf of the USA:

@norightturnnz Idiot/Savant

WTF? NZ police arrest kiwis on behalf of US for filesharing -

Over at Kiwiblog, DPF has his people talking about this issue, and opinion is divided as to whether the NZ Police should have been involved. But this story from 3News is both interesting and enlightening:

The founder of the website at the centre of an FBI-led investigation into online piracy barricaded himself with what appeared to be a shortened shotgun during the raid, police say.

Kim Dotcom, also known as Kim Schmitz, and three others were arrested in police raids in Auckland on Friday.

Who is Kim Dotcom?

The 37-year-old is a German national with New Zealand residency.

The FBI probe resulted in one of the world's largest file-sharing websites, www.megaupload.com, being shut down on Friday morning.

Read yesterday's story about Kim Schmitz's dramatic arrest

Detective Inspector Grant Wormald says when police arrived at the mansion in Coatsville in two marked police helicopters, Dotcom retreated into the house despite police clearly identifying themselves.

He activated several electronic locking mechanisms inside the house, called the Dotcom Mansion, Det Insp Wormald said.

"While police neutralised these locks he then further barricaded himself into a safe room within the house which officers had to cut their way into.

"Once they gained entry into this room they found Mr Dotcom near a firearm which had the appearance of a shortened shotgun."

Making the arrest was "definitely not as simple as knocking at the front door", he said.

If Dotcom is nothing more than a legitimate businessman, why would he have a "safe room" in the middle of his masion, and why would he need such elborate security precautions. Why would he need a shotgun at his side?

And 3News has helpfully provided a link to the actual indictment handed down by a Grand Jury in the Eastern District of Virginia, USA. It's a lengthy and comprehensive document which alleges that Dotcom and his co-accused have made a lot of money from Megauploads over an extended period using business practices which might not be especially kosher. It will, of course, be up to a Court in the USA to determine guit or innocence, but the indictment makes a pretty compelling case to our bush-lawyer eyes.

And then there's the issue of Dotcom's immigration status. This story is The Telegraph suggests that Dotcom is no stranger to the Courts. So it begs the question; how did he satisfy the "good character" requirement for applicants for New Zealand residence? Were his past "indiscretions" even disclosed?

There are many, many questions hanging over Kim Dotcom and his business associates. We reckon that the best way for those questions to be cleaned up is for the men to be extradited to the USA, where they can have their day in Court. And we're not at all concerned that the NZ Police have helped to facilitate this through the arrest of Dotcom yesterday.

Jones versus Nasser

2012-01-21T08:57:00.002+13:00

It's all on for young and old. In the Blue corner; feisty, acid-tongued and with a lifetime of experience; it's the Boxing Knight, Sir Bob Jones. And in the Red corner; he brings the bling; it's Khoder "Show me the Money" Nasser!

What on earth are we talking about? Stuff explains:

Veteran boxing historian and promoter Sir Bob Jones reckons Sonny Bill Williams "can't box" and should be fighting as an amateur.

But Williams' manager, Khoder Nasser, fired back, saying he's never heard of Sir Bob and wants to see his boxing "credentials".

Williams is scheduled to fight Clarence Tillman III for the title at Claudelands Arena in Hamilton on February 8.

Since launching his boxing career in 2009, the star All Black has fought, and beaten, four much lesser opponents, including 43-year-old gospel-singing sickness beneficiary Alipate Liava'a in June last year.

Sir Bob said yesterday Williams was not a credible boxer and should not be fighting as a professional, let alone for the heavyweight title.

"I'm afraid as a boxing historian I cannot take SBW seriously," he said.

"He can't box; he's what we call an arm-puncher, but that's hardly surprising given his novice status. If he enjoys boxing then that of course is his business and he should go for it – but as an amateur."

Sir Bob, a former boxing manager, promoter and commentator, said Williams strikes him as a person "desperate to get his name in the papers and prepared to do anything".

He also took a swing at Sky TV for promoting and broadcasting the fight "just because mugs pay".

Mr Nasser said he should not even have to answer the comments.

"Why am I even talking, or even rebutting, someone who doesn't even register on the map?" he said.

Khoder Nasser has gravely underestimated Sir Robert in our always-humble opinion. We've often heard Jones interviewed on radio and on the telly, and he knows boxing inside out. And he's right on the money when he suggests that Williams lacks credibility as a fighter.

On the other hand, it's Nasser's job to talk Sonny Bill up; after all, he'll be taking a cut from everything SBW earns. But at some point, Williams needs to decide what his real priority is, and devote himself solely to it.

We're absolutely sure that Sir Robert won't take this lying down; in boxing terms, he'll counter-punch his way out of the corner. And when he does, that will be worth WAY more than the PPV cost of Williams' next bout, which, as it happens, we won't be paying!

Well done you Phoenix

2012-01-21T07:52:00.004+13:00

The Wellington Phoenix players will return home today after the best road-trip in the club's history. Following their 1-0 win over the Gold Coast on Sunday night, they repeated the scoreline last night against Newcastle Jets to give the club its first ever back-to-back away victories.

It was a gutsy performance by the 'Nix players, who were pretty much out on their feet by the end of last night's match. And when the final whistle blew, the players congratulated defender Manny Muscat who scored his first A-League goal in his 85th match for the Wellington side.

Muscat's finish was one that any striker would have been proud of. He got loose on the corner of the Newcastle penalty area, dragged the ball down, cut inside a defender and let fly with a left-foot shot from 15m that left Newcastle 'keeper Ben Kennedy no chance.

This was a hugely important win for the Phoenix; written off before the season began, they've now vaulted the Melbourne Heart into third place; home play-off territory. Better still, their next match is against the Heart next week in Wellington, and they have the chance to lock themselves into the top three.

The Phoenix has again risen from the ashes; from barely having a team at the start of the season and having no money to buy any, Ricki Herbert now has a fully fit squad, and there's real competition for places. Let's hope we are about to be treated to another late-season run, deep into the play-offs.

Why they pulled the pin

2012-01-20T16:47:00.003+13:00

The photograph below might just give alert readers a clue as to why the organisers of Auckland's Big Day Out have pulled the pin on the event. Today's BDO is the final one.

Just for clarification, both photo's were taken at 1pm at the respevtive BDO. The top one is from 2007; the bottom one is today's event.

Now we ourselves have never been to BDO, but our Darling Daughter did last year, and said that she wouldn't bother going again. At least her comments about overcrowding last year won't be an issue today.

Farewell Big Day Out; however we're sure that some entrepreneurial soul will find a way to fill the void.

We gave them the idea....

2012-01-20T11:42:00.003+13:00

We have no delusions about the extent of our reach into that infinity which some call cyberspace. We're a very small fish in a very large ocean.

But we'd like to think that the clever marketing folks from Tui Brewery might have got this idea from us:

Or maybe it's just a case of "Yeah right"!!

We can't help but wonder...

2012-01-20T10:00:00.003+13:00

There's a story in the Herald this morning that piqued our interest. Claire Trevett has done a bit of digging, and she's discovered where Labour's money came from at the last election; check this out:

WHAT THEY GAVE
(2008 donation in brackets)
* Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union: $40,000 (2008: $60,000)
* Dairy Workers' Union: $25,000 (2008: $12,000)
* Maritime Union: $18,500 (2008: none disclosed)
* Meat Workers' Union: $18,000 (2008: $25,500)
* Service and Food Workers' Union: $15,000 (2008: $20,000)
* FIRST Union (not affiliated): $4000 (2008: nil)

So we can't help but wonder; when all that the Labour Party has given the Maritime Union so far is a post on Red Alert, and a token appearance on the picket line by Darien Fenton, might they be feeling that they're not getting much bang for the buck?

Parallels

2012-01-20T08:50:00.000+13:00

Just watching La Curran tying herself in knots at Red Blurt (again) and copping the learn from Farrar (again), I was reminded of something that should have been Quote of the day'd a couple of weeks ago.

Marina Hyde, writing in the Grauniad about Ed Miliband's "blackbuster" SMOG:

But the overriding impression is that Ed Miliband's Labour don't know what they're doing. And while the other lot don't know what they're doing, and in a far more worrying way, they manage to go about not knowing it with considerably more finesse.

Tell me that's not the story of the entire 49th parliament...

The Friday Forum - 20 January 2012

2012-01-20T08:39:00.003+13:00

It's Friday again; thank goodness. This has been the first full working week of 2012 for us, and it's been a long one; thank goodness it's Wellington Anniversary Day on Monday, and we can grab an extra day off!

It's also been a dry and sunny week, by and large. We've already had more than January's average rainfall after a record wet December, and the sun is most welcome. Who knows; we might yet get a summer!

But we digress; the Friday is your place to postulate, procrastinate (if you're looking for a reason to avoid work) and publish your thoughts on any issue that takes your fancy. All we ask is that you show a modicum of respect for other people's views; after all, the blogosphere would be a boring place if we all agreed on everything!

So that's it from us; the floor is yours...

"Slow suicide"

2012-01-20T06:43:00.005+13:00

Up until now, we haven't commented on the death of Ben "Blanket Man" Hana. There's been no need to; others have eulogised him well enough, and more than enough politicians have jumped on the bandwagon.

But we've just seen the following piece from Rosemary McLeod in the Dom-Post, and that's prompted us to break our self-imposed silence; she opines:

So Blanket Man is dead. Now for the commemorative sculpture from Weta Workshop - I see the call for a sculpture has begun already - and the funeral attended by local dignitaries and those who used to feed him booze and junk food in Courtenay Place. They meant well, but they didn't do him any good. He wouldn't let them.
Blanket Man did a slow suicide on Wellington's streets, dressed only in a loincloth and blanket, for years, and for this he became the city's mascot. Is it too late to make dangly effigies of him to hang from rear vision mirrors?

Am I cynical? Yes. The sight of Ben Hana, bedraggled and slowly dying, didn't inspire me. I didn't think, as one dignitary has remarked, that "he did it his way". I wondered instead about the world I live in, where a self-destructive scarecrow of a man can become an antihero, someone to mentally pat on the head for luck as you pass by, and even - this is where we were collectively quite mad - a tourist attraction, the local pet Maori.

I didn't have any warm fuzzy feelings about the spectacle he presented. I felt angry, thinking about the marginalised people, all life's failures around us, who want so much and somehow can achieve so little, and how too many of them are also Maori. Don't throw pity into the equation. Pity, a soppy variation on complacency, is the last thing anybody wants to be on the receiving end of. No wonder he shrugged it off. Anger is what the downtrodden need, whatever gives them the energy to grasp hold of the only life they'll ever get, and make something positive of it that may actually bring some joy. This they won't get out of booze and marijuana, the addictions that were the focus of Blanket Man's life, and which killed him at 54.

Rosemary McLeod will likely as not be vilified for this piece. But she has shown a level of honesty that has escaped others in the media. Ben Hana was offered help and support, but he largely spurned those offers. His choices took him down a road which ultimately led to him being mentally incapable of making further choices. Even then, social agencies still did what they could for him, or what he would allow them to do.

Ben Hana's death was a stark reminder of the damage that alcohol and drugs can do to an already-fragile mind. Those who advocate the decriminalisation of cannabis should look first at the Ben Hanas of this world.

And when Ms McLeod says that "Blanket Man did a slow suicide on Wellington's streets", she is right on the money.

Tui billboard of the day

2012-01-19T09:22:00.004+13:00

This one is dedicated to the fearless skipper of the Costa Concordia, Captain Francesco Schettino...

Darien breaks ranks

2012-01-19T08:25:00.002+13:00

David Shearer said yesterday that Labour was staying out of the Ports of Auckland/MUNZ dispute. Within a matter of hours, Darien Fenton had posted on Red Alert; she blogged:

There’s been some chatter around about Labour’s position on the Ports of Auckland dispute.

At our core Labour believes that all Kiwis deserve decent jobs with fair pay, that they should have certainty around their work hours and conditions and their families need to know that they will come home safe and sound at the end of the day.

And while I’m at it, Labour will strongly oppose any suggestion that the Ports of Auckland be privatised. It is a public asset belonging to the people of Auckland, and needs to be kept for the benefit of future generations.

Sure, employers can seek reasonable efficiencies, effective labour utilisation and a fair return on investment. The Ports are an important part of our transport infrastructure and they need to be operating as productively and efficiently as possible.

But good faith bargaining and working together to find common ground is the way to achieve this, not wholesale redundancies and contracting out.

Labour is concerned about the increasing casualisation of the workforce in New Zealand. What this does is create uncertainty and stress for workers and their families – and, as we have seen, can cost lives.

Now if that's not a justification for the union's stance from Labour's industrial relations spokeswoman, we don't know what is. If David Shearer is trying to distance the Labour Party from the union movement, then Darien Fenton has just fired a warning shot across his bows.

And Cactus Kate has already fisked Ms Fenton's post, especially her argument on casualisation; the Prickly One blogs:

The problem with MUNZ's, Fenton's and the left's argument about casualisation is that right now MUNZ is pursuing a case against POAL in the Employment Court to prevent the Port offering permanent jobs to "lashers".

This is not a joke. They are AGAINST casuals getting permanent jobs. The POAL has proceeded to employ on a permanent basis.

Hang on some may say, is the Union not bravely leading the struggle against "casualisation" along with Third Woman on the Wharf, Helen "Clean Up" Kelly and the left?

You may think so, but not when the Union bullies (mainly old, white crusty's like the charming couple we met yesterday on this blog) have the top jobs and like to take the overtime at their much higher rates rather than allow the lower paid workers to get permanent jobs.

See - it is never quite that straightforward with Union bullies is it Darien? Best you stay out of it then and go back to watching the Mad Butcher specials for some weekend shopping.

Well; fancy that. One one hand MUNZ Local 13 is prepared to see jobs at PoAL go down the gurgler rather than accept casualisation. And on the other, MUNZ Local 13 is fighting PoAL to PREVENT casual workers getting permanent employment.

It's hardly surprising that David Shearer is staying out of this mess. Who in their right mind would want to hang their hat on a MUNZ hook right now?

Dark Side of the Moon

2012-01-19T07:28:00.003+13:00

Pink Floyd will forever be remembered for their album Dark Side of the Moon. And playing drums on that iconic album was Nick Mason.

Mason did well out of Pink Floyd. And he's become one of the world's foremost collectors of classic and vintage cars. There's a pictorial overview of his collection here and it's a pretty impressive collection!

But this week Nick Mason is visiting Wanganui. He's the guest of honour at the VCC International Rally which we have blogged about previously. 3News caught up with him; you can see the story here.

One of the highlights of Mason's week will be the competition day at Manfield on Saturday, where dozens of classic cars will be put through their paces on the track. He'll be behind the wheel of a Ford GT40.

Nick Mason brings a bit of rock and roll pizzaz to the rally in Wanganui, which has already been a huge success. Doubtless he'll be mixing with the crowds during Sunday's Open Day at the Wanganui Racecourse, where around 700 cars will be on display; a must see for car buffs, and part of Wanganui's Heritage Weekend. We might see you there!

Too young to be prosecuted...

2012-01-19T07:04:00.003+13:00

The Herald reports on a story this morning that had us shaking our head in disbelief; check this out:

A 13-year-old who drove after drinking at a family wedding showed "blatant disregard" for the law and was "directly" responsible for the death of the bride's 17-year-old daughter, a coroner has found.

And it has been revealed that police were advised against pursuing a manslaughter prosecution and could not charge the boy with driving offences because of his age.

Mary-Lee Huata, 17, died on December 27, 2010 when she was thrown from a Toyota Hilux that rolled not far from where her mother's Christmas Day wedding had been held near Wairoa.

She was one of four people aged between 17 and 20 being driven by Tyrone Thornton.

An inquest was held in September, and coroner Christopher Devonport's findings were released yesterday.

Mr Devonport was told that the group had been at the wedding of Miss Huata's mother, Beverly, and her partner Mark at the Kahungunu Marae at Raupunga. Many relatives stayed on at the marae for several days to continue celebrations.

Tyrone drank five pre-mixed vodka drinks before the crash and went to sleep in the driver's seat of the Toyota about 4am.

Two hours later, his cousin Hayden Thornton woke him and asked him to drive him home. They left, but returned seconds later to pick up Miss Huata and two others.

Tyrone told police he was still tired when he was asked to drive, and acknowledged he might have fallen asleep at the wheel.

Hayden Thornton told police he asked Tyrone to drive, and said: "Tyrone can drive and he has driven on the road before. As a group we were all pretty drunk, me included. Tyrone was okay with it ..."

About 800m from the marae, Tyrone lost control of the Toyota. Miss Huata, who was in the back seat, was not wearing a seatbelt and was ejected from the vehicle when it rolled. She suffered a skull fracture and bleeding around her brain and died a short time later.

Mr Devonport said the cause of Miss Huata's death was clear.

"A group of intoxicated persons asked a 13-year-old to drive them ... The 13-year-old was not licensed to drive, and was not at an age at which he was entitled to hold a licence to drive. Further, he had consumed alcohol, and acknowledged that he only had several hours of sleep and may have fallen asleep."

This was a death that was absolutely avoidable. And the question needs to be asked; where were Tyrone Thornton's parents through all this? Were they aware that their son was getting juiced up? Did they send him to bed, or was staying up until 4am something they encouraged?

13-year-olds are not permitted to drive for good reason; they simply lack the judgment required to make good decisions. And 13-year-olds are prohibited from buying alcohol for a good reason too; their developing brains and bodies simply cannot handle it. That didn't stop Tyrone Thornton from drinking alcohol and driving, and killing someone. But then we find that he's also too young to be prosecuted.

This is a tragic story on so many counts. We hope that Tyrone and his whanau have learnt from this; it's just sad that the lesson came at such a high price for the victim.

'Fessing up

2012-01-18T19:11:00.002+13:00

Right; we don't have to worry with the word "alleged" in connection with the 16 year old Turangi youth anymore. The youth, who continues to have name suppression appeared in the Taupo Youth Court this morning, and admitted all the charges against him; TVNZ reports:

There is relief in Turangi that the 16-year-old who attacked and raped a five-year-old tourist at a campground will now be sentenced in an adult court.

The teen pleaded guilty on three charges including one count of sexual violation, one count of sexual violation causing grievous bodily harm and entering the caravan with the intent to commit a crime in the Taupo Youth Court today.

The judge said the December 21 attack was too serious for sentencing in the Youth Court.

We have no doubt that the family of the young girl who was violently assaulted and violated will be relieved that there will be no lengthy trial. The youth has been remanded in custody to appear for sentencing in the Rotorua District Court on 23rd February.

Regular commenter Quintin Hogg (who knows a bit about legal matters) made an interesting comment on another blog yesterday about the sentencing process; check this out:

Quintin Hogg

2 things,

1. The Youth Court Judge who dealt with this individual won't be the sentencing judge.

2.In a thread yesterday the Court of Appeal case R v Am was discussed. That case established bands of sentencing for sexual assaults. Reading that case this offending falls within band three of the bands established by that decision. There is likely to be a sentence between 12 - 18 years. My view is it will be at the higher end of the band because of the agravating features of the case. Countered against that will be allowances, themselves mandated by the Sentencing Act and other decisions of the Court of Appeal, including Hessell, such as the age of the offender and the early plea which will reduce the sentence from the initial starting point by about 25-35%.

I'm picking a sentence of somewhere between 14-15 years.

There has been a high level of outrage at this unprovoked attack on a defenceless young girl. We concur with Quitin Hogg's assessment, and suggest that there would be considerable unease in the community if a lesser sentence was imposed.

Healthy lifestyles

2012-01-18T11:21:00.004+13:00

We blogged at the start of the year that we were determined to get healthy this year. We've already lost a good bit of weight simply by modifying our diet. But that in itself won't be enough.

So this afternoon, we'll be embarking on part of our exercise regime; it's a lovely day, and the golf course beckons. A walk of between five and seven kilometers, and a few hefty swings of the clubs should be just the caper; a full-body workout!

We haven't played a full round for several months, but we have to start somewhere. We have no expectations of burning the course up; our golf swing is a work in progress. But even the mere thought of getting out into the fresh air for a few hours has a certain allure, and we plan to make it a regular occurance.

Assuming we survive, blogging will resume sometime late this afternoon or early this evening. In the meanwhile the phone will be off the hook...

Putting the child first

2012-01-18T10:20:00.003+13:00

CHild, Youth and Family gets a lot of criticism where child abuse cases are concerned, but they deserve credit in this particular case; Stuff reports:

The mother of a Ngaruawahia baby who died in unexplained circumstances has lost custody of her newborn baby – just days after giving birth.

Chelsea Scott, mother of six-month-old Serenity Jay Scott-Dinnington who died last April, gave birth on January 6.

However, Miss Scott was with her baby daughter for only about 48 hours before the child was taken into Child, Youth and Family care.

Family and friends of Miss Scott and the girl's father, Matthew Ellery, confirmed the news to the Waikato Times.

A family member said both Miss Scott and the baby were healthy, although the girl was born slightly underweight at about 5 pounds.

Mr Ellery was not Serenity's biological father and the new baby is the couple's first together.

Serenity was found unresponsive on April 26 in the Havelock Rd house the baby shared with her then 21-year-old mother, her boyfriend, Mr Ellery, and Miss Scott's brother, Drew Scott.

Serenity's life support was turned off in Auckland's Starship hospital two days later and provisional autopsy results found she died from traumatic brain injuries.

Waikato police detective sergeant Mark Greene yesterday said police were still investigating Serenity's death and were awaiting forensic pathology results from overseas.

"The inquiry has continued and we are still working on it," he said.

CYF general manager operations Marama Edwards confirmed to the Waikato Times the baby girl was safe and well and living with an approved CYF caregiver.

The Times understands that caregiver is a cousin of Miss Scott.

"Both Child, Youth and Family and the court take these cases very seriously and decisions around removing a child from his or her parents are never taken lightly.

"Child, Youth and Family's priority is to the care and safety of this baby girl.

As far as we are concerned, that last sentence goes to the heart of this case. Nothing is more important than the safety of this infant. That is especially so, given that her parents are two of the three people living in the house where Serenity received her fatal head injury for which no-one has yet been charged.

And as we read this story we remembered the circumstances of this case. Especially prominent was the recollection that when a concerned Ngaruawahia woman organised a public meeting to condemn Serenity's death and the tide of child abuse, she was accused of being a "nark". Obviously, there is still a culture in New Zealand where staying staunch and sticking by your mates is more important that condomning child abuse, or trying to do something concrete about it.

Child abuse is a blight on our so-called civilised society. So on this occasion we commend CYF for its pro-active response. Hopefully this newborn will enjoy a happier outcome than her half-sister, thans to the early intervention by CYF.

Is this what MUNZ is REALLY like?

2012-01-18T08:39:00.003+13:00

This post from Cactus Kate is a must-read; she blogs:

The Stranded has reposted stories of some of the workers who claim to earn under the $91,000 average. This is to be welcomed, some real life case studies of the sort of chaps down their doing good honest half days of work. So Meet the Wharfies.

Now I will let you meet the real culture of the Wharfies they didn't want to share. Stronger Together.

Unless you are from Tuvalu or a woman.

It doesn't take much of a google to see the sort of chaps who work on the Ports of Auckland Wharf. They sure keep the Employment Court amused and busy. The mainstream media briefly touched on the problems late last year when it was buried in election coverage.

Cactus has done her homework here, as one would expect. And what she's come up with shows members of the Maritime Union Local 13 (the Auckland branch) in none-too-flattering light.

MUNZ Local 13 may be resorting to some old-school unionism with its repetitive strike notices, but it would appear that other "old-school" attitudes are prevalent on the wharves in Auckland, especially from senior members of the union. This Employment Court judgment in particular is worthy of a read in its entirety.

Could issues such as these be the underlying reason that the Labour Party is refusing to publicly endorse MUNZ's position? We think that's an entirely reasonable supposition.

Why the silence Labour?

2012-01-18T06:22:00.002+13:00

Labour's silence on the MUNZ/Ports of Auckland dispute continues; the Herald reports:

Both National and Labour and even the Act Party are refusing to get off the fence over the ongoing Ports of Auckland industrial dispute, saying it is a matter for management and the Maritime Union to resolve.

The Green Party however, has come out swinging, with industrial relations spokeswoman and former Auckland City councillor Denise Roche accusing management of having a "recalcitrant attitude" which masks an agenda to privatise the port.

Despite the considerable union influence within his party and calls for him to offer support to Maritime Union members, new Labour leader David Shearer has kept quiet on the matter.

Now to be fair to Shearer, he's been on holiday. But he's back now, and his continued silence on this suggests a determination by the Labour Party to throw off the perception that their agenda is set by the unions; however true that perception may be! One can't help but wonder who's calling the shots.

It's certainly not Darien Fenton; read on:

Yesterday Labour industrial relations spokeswoman Darien Fenton, who has been spotted on the picket line at the port, said her party was not taking sides in the dispute.

"We've been hoping that the parties will settle this, that they'll find a way through this."

Ms Fenton said Mr Shearer had been in regular touch with both sides, "and he's in contact with me and we're all discussing it regularly".

"Our strong view at this point is it's not helpful for politicians to get involved."

Ms Fenton said she was concerned about the prospect that Ports of Auckland's workforce would be casualised.

"We're trying to be specific about this because it has huge risks, it's not just workers at the port it's got risks to workers across the country."

Darien Fenton's comments here, having partially slipped the muzzle that seems to have been slapped on her are interesting. For all her faults, Ms Fenton is passionate about workers' rights. And wouldn't you think that if Labour is worried about the PoAL dispute having the potential to lead to greater casualisation in the workplace, they'd be fighting tooth and nail with MUNZ and the CTU. But no; any opposition Labour has to PoAL's negotiating stance is being kept silent.

Or perhaps there's another explanation. David Shearer is a man of the world, and perhaps he realises that the MUNZ members have been on a pretty good wicket, and that public opinion is firmly with the ports company. That of course immediately puts him in conflict with his industrial relations spokeswoman, but internal dissent is nothing new to the Labour Party.

In any event, we're sure that certain factions on the Left will keep the acid on Labour's new leader to declare his hand, and we're equally sure that the longer Shearer maintains his silence, the more the pressure on him will be ramped up. We wait with bated breath.

Welcome back to work David...

2012-01-17T15:36:00.003+13:00

Over at Bowalley Road, Chris Trotter welcomes David Shearer back to work for the New Year. But it's probably not the kind of welcome that the new Labour Party leader was expecting; check this out:

WHY SO SILENT, Mr Shearer? Why has the Labour Party not voiced its solidarity with the Maritime Unions of New Zealand? Why have you not spoken out against the Ports of Auckland CEO’s outrageous threat to sack his entire workforce? What’s the matter with you, man?

The white sands and Pohutukawa blooms of Northland are beautiful at this time of year, and God knows you’ve earned a break, but you must know a politician is never truly on holiday. Time and the twenty-four-hour news cycle wait for no man.

The story unfolding on the Auckland waterfront has political implications far beyond the winning and losing of a single industrial dispute. Ultimately, it’s about whether or not the Labour Party stands for something more than an alternative set of political managers. And, if it does, then what, in the 21^st Century, is that “something more” about?

You are fond of telling us, Mr Shearer, about that transformative moment in the Sudan when you looked over the side of the truck you were travelling in and witnessed half-starved children scrabbling in the dust for the scraps of food you had casually tossed away. It’s an arresting image: redolent with all the sub-texts of injustice, wealth and poverty, and the inevitable conflicts to which scarcity gives rise. And the clear implication of your story is that not only did you perceive the intrinsic moral squalor of the scene being enacted in the fly-blown Sudan dust, but that you decided then and there to do something about it.

It’s why you’re the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Shearer. Your United Nations “back-story” of “doing something” about poverty, war and injustice is what inspired your colleagues to make you, rather than David Cunliffe, leader of the Labour Party. An essential element of that back-story, in case you need reminding, was your celebrated Kiwi approach; your ability to get alongside all the parties involved in a conflict and help them identify the common-ground. It’s what you’re supposed to be good at.

So, I ask again: Why so silent on the Ports of Auckland dispute?

During Labour's selection process, much was made of David Shearer's "back-story", an expression that we hadn't heard used wisely previously to that. It would seem however that Mr Shearer's back-story has come back to bite him on the bum.

And Trotter speculates as to whom might be providing the new Leader of the Opposition with his strategic advice; read on:

Is it because you’ve been listening to Trevor Mallard, Mr Shearer? I sincerely hope not. Because Mr Mallard and his ilk are the very last people you should be listening to at the moment. They are, when all is said and done, the people who devised the campaign strategy which culminated in Labour’s worst election result in more than 80 years. The people whose political counsel is dictated by opinion polls and focus-groups. The sort of people who purport to lead by following. The people who would have asked those Sudanese children scrabbling in the dust which variety of scraps were their favourite.

Or, perhaps you’re recalling the example of “Side-line Stan” Rodger – Minister of Labour during the darkest days of Rogernomics. Mr Rodger made a virtue out of staying on the side-lines of industrial relations and refusing to involve the Government in settling strikes and lockouts.

And then comes the most stinging rebuke of all:

St Paul would have recognised the tactic. He recalled the time, before his encounter on the Road to Damascus, when he had held the cloaks of those involved in the hot work of stoning a Christian martyr. But, after Damascus (and the Sudan?) St Paul and you both understood that to stand on the side-lines while injustice is taking place is to participate in that injustice. If you opt to “hold the cloaks” of the Ports of Auckland management while they stone their own employees – then, damn you Mr Shearer, you’re as guilty as they are.

Chris Trotter closes by urging David Shearer to get down to the Auckland wharves, and show solidarity with the MUNZ members, who have just issued their sixth strike notice. This seems to us to be a very early test of Shearer's leadership, and of future relationships between Labour and the union movement.

How will David Shearer respond? The gauntlet has been thrown down by Trotter and by other left-leaning bloggers; will Shearer rise to the challenge, or will his silence on the Ports of Auckland dispute continue, and the strikes are doing.

They don't make 'em like this...

2012-01-17T15:19:00.007+13:00

As we type this, the official opening of the VCC International Rally is underway. There were a few cars around when we happened to be driving past Rally HQ this morning; they most certainly don't make 'em like this any more!

Wanganui has turned on another stunning day to welcome our visitors to the city. It's quite cool to pull into the supermarket carpark, and park alongside something that graced the roads 70 or more years ago. All the cars that we've seen so far are immaculately presented, and are a credit to their owners.

Long may the sun shine, and the brass gleam!

We can't help but wonder...

2012-01-17T11:25:00.003+13:00

We just heard a radio advertisement for the Mad Butcher (he's got pork on sale this week; yum!) which closes with the school holiday offer of 16 Traffic Light iceblocks for $4.95.

We can't help but wonder whether Darien Fenton will be sneaking in under cover of darkness to buy a packet...

Opportunity or threat?

2012-01-17T10:42:00.002+13:00

Apparently, there's oil in them thar hills. To be specific, oil exploration has suggested that there are considerable deposits of oil on the East Coast, both onshore and offshore.

But already the opposition begins; check out this media release from Moana Mackey, Labour list MP:

15 January 2012

National’s ‘drill it, mine it, sell it’ approach not the path to economic growth
Revelations that oil exploration company TAG Oil plans to aggressively pursue mining on New Zealand’s East Coast and turn it into the "Texas of the South" shows that National’s ‘drill it, mine it, sell it' approach to economic development is well underway, says Labour's Energy spokesperson and East Coast-based MP Moana Mackey.
“This is not where New Zealand’s economic future lies. We need to be investing instead in renewable solutions.
“New Zealanders will be shocked by the extent of TAG’s plans for an ‘aggressive East Coast basin programme’ comprising thousands of oil wells and significant land purchases.
“This is the logical result of National’s laissez-faire approach to energy policy.
“As a Gisborne-based MP, I know how concerned communities up and down the East Coast are about any expansion of oil and gas exploration in our backyard, in particular the impact on our environment and our tourism industry. And who pays if something goes wrong?
“This is not a sustainable solution for the region’s economic development, but the National Government has no other plan.”
Moana Mackey also questioned whether the controversial practice of hydraulic fracturing or ‘fracking’ was part of TAG Oil’s plans for the East Coast.
“An increasing number of governments around the world are reviewing or banning fracking because of concerns about the safety of the practice and in particular the impact on drinking water supplies.
“Labour has been calling for an inquiry into the practice of fracking in New Zealand so that these concerns can be fully investigated. Unfortunately the National Government continues to ignore public concerns about this controversial practice,” said Moana Mackey.
ends

Now to the best of our knowledge, there's been no suggestion whatsoever that TAG Oil has any plans to engage in fracking; a practice that we don't know enough about to be able to comment.

But isn't this typical of Labour? Here is a suggestion that could produce prosperity for New Zealand, and for the impoverished East Coast in particular. And what's Labour's response? A sniping media release by an MP who has several times been rejected by the people of the East Coast, but who survives in Parliament thanks to MMP.

Moana Mackey should take a trip over to New Plymouth and see what energy resources did for Taranaki; and without undue effect on the landscape. Instead of welcoming and opportunity that could provide any number of jobs from the people whom she would want to represent and generate wealth in the area she and her mother before her call home, Mackey trots out an unoriginal slogan (used by the Greens in last year's election), and disses the whole idea.

Surely, Moana Mackey's media release could have said how much she welcomed the possibility of jobs being created for the people of the East Coast, provided that environmental concerns were addressed. But no; her response was wholly political; another opportunity to attack the government.

A look at the Elections website tells us that Anne Tolley won the East Coast electorate by almost 5000 votes over Moana Mackey in 2011; the third time Ms Mackey has contested the seat formerly held by her mother, and the third time that she has lost. When she can't find anything positive to say about an initiative which could transform one of New Zealand's least wealthy areas, it isn't hard to understand why.

Good on the surface

2012-01-17T10:01:00.003+13:00

It seems that the UK Department of Education is able tofunction reasonably adequately even while its minister is daydreaming aboutroyal yachts.

The Guardian is reporting the success of a campaign headed byRichard Dawkins, Sir David Attenborough and the British Humanist Association(BHA) to prevent faith-based Free Schools teaching creationism as fact with theDoE revising their agreements to remove the government funding fromestablishments which try to run religious “Intelligent Design” Trojan horses inscience lessons.

It worrying that such a measure has been necessary in theUK, but I guess the level of nutbarism in the US was overflowing in influenceand dollar-terms into the UK. We should be awake to that same influence coming to NZ, and I will certainly be writing to both John Banks and Hekia Parata withrespect to the establishment of Free or Charter schools here.

Where my positive impressions start to evaporate, is in thewording reportedly inserted into the agreements to make this happen:

funding will be withdrawn for any free school that teacheswhat it claims are "evidence-based views or theories" that run"contrary to established scientific and/or historical evidence andexplanations".

There’s another obvious area of contention that this catches,which is the climate change / AGW argument. So schools will also be forced toteach only the government approved Al Gore line? It's a carte blanche to push whatever the state wants pushed. Making a sweeping change based on one specific circumstance is always a bad idea, why not a simple "No mucking about with the scientific method, there'll be none of that, and Creationism is right out."

Science is about competing evidence-based theories, takethat away, and it’s not science anymore. The point about “Intelligent Design”, isthat it isn’t “evidence-based” at all, ask a proponent for evidence in favourof ID and what you’ll get is an attempt to poke holes in the evidence forsomething else (such as a “gap” in the fossil record), therefore Evolution can’thave happened and the only other option is god dunnit.

I feel like I’m expressing a worryingly socialist point of view,I want other peoples’ children to be taught what I think is right, but I guessthere’s always a point at which principles and reality clash…

Keeping Stock

Deja vu all over again...

Speaking of retirements...

Another big job to fill

Emmerson finds a new target

The Umpire strikes back

Retort of the Day

Equal pay for equal work

Dear Chelsea...

Rising from the ashes

Tony Hodges? It's Mallard speaking...

How good is Lydia?

Who makes you fat?

Caning The Standard

Christian Music Sunday - 29 January 2012; a Parachute special

What a rout

Quote of the Day

The big bluff

O'Sullivan on the Crafar farms

Classic catches

Stand by for the outpouring..

Give us strength!

Farewell; it's been brilliant!

Fifty years on

The Friday Forum - 27 January 2012

A leaky Caption Contest

A policeman's lot...

Leaky teapot

On yer bike occupiers!

The Wonderful Days of Summer...

The Fiji floods

Remanded in custody..

The Pup and Punter show

In the interests of transparency

So much for MUNZ's numbers...

Don't drink and drive...

How?

The secret diary of...

UPDATED: Speaking of occupations ending...

Len Brown

A prophetic headline?

Page not found

Has hell frozen over?

Happy Anniversary Wellington

Hypocrisy alert of the day...

A question for Len

Quelle surprise!

An interesting follow...

Maritime Union NZ @maritimeunion is now following you (@Inventory2).

Why do they bother?

Dotcom questions

Jones versus Nasser

Well done you Phoenix

Why they pulled the pin

We gave them the idea....

We can't help but wonder...

Parallels

The Friday Forum - 20 January 2012

"Slow suicide"

Tui billboard of the day

Darien breaks ranks

Dark Side of the Moon

Too young to be prosecuted...

'Fessing up

Healthy lifestyles

Putting the child first

Is this what MUNZ is REALLY like?

Why the silence Labour?

Welcome back to work David...

They don't make 'em like this...

We can't help but wonder...

Opportunity or threat?

Good on the surface