Posts
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Friday, May 22, 2009
AverageJoe, land of the long white entrepreneur
The new idea about free air flights as seen on STUFF aint so new after all. See my blog of April 15th entitled "Three tangible ideas to turn the country around". Specifically Idea Three.
Looks like some entrepreneurs have been reading http://www.averagejoe.co.nz/
Kia Ora entrepreneurs and welcome :o)
Looks like some entrepreneurs have been reading http://www.averagejoe.co.nz/
Kia Ora entrepreneurs and welcome :o)
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Thursday, May 21, 2009
Power to the people?
We’re paying too much for our power…well Duh!!!
The story came out today that the Commerce Comission have found that 4 power companies, 3 of the state owned, have overcharged New Zealanders $4.3 billion over 7 years.
Here’s the story from www.newstalkzb.co.nz
Power companies lawfully exploited market
New Zealand's power companies have been found to have lawfully exploited their market power to raise wholesale electricity prices.
A Commerce Commission report into Contact, Genesis, Meridian and Mighty River Power clears the four companies of any price fixing. It says they did not take advantage of market power for any anti-competitive purpose.
But it has found the four companies legally used market power to charge an extra $4.3 billion, more than they would have earned had the conditions been competitive from 2001 to 2007.
The commission has also issued a warning to TrustPower for attempting to enter into an anti-competitive agreement with Genesis in 2004.
Now $4.3b sounds like a lot, it is in one lump sum, but how much is it out of pockets monthly?
According to the ‘About us’ pages on their websites, Meridian, Mighty River Power, Contact and Genesis have 1.83 million customers between them.
$4.3b, over 7 years, across 1.83 million users is $28 per month, per user (about $335 per year, or $2350 over the whole 7 years for each user)…so it is significant, but here’s the thing, the average power bill in New Zealand is around $150 per month, even if we take back the $30 that they are stealing from us, we are still paying around 50% more than Australia does per month for power…why?
April 1st this year Austraia had an across the board power hike of 20% to…wait for it, just under $90 per month on average.
If you look at the OECD tables, NZ uses less power per person in every category than Australia, but we pay more.
Should something be done about these soulless companies, remembering that three are owned by us, and how there are the modern reincarnation of Vikings, raping and pillaging our pockets?
Yes!
Should our government explain to us why we are paying so much more for power, when we are all using less, than Australia?
A much, much louder YES!
The story came out today that the Commerce Comission have found that 4 power companies, 3 of the state owned, have overcharged New Zealanders $4.3 billion over 7 years.
Here’s the story from www.newstalkzb.co.nz
Power companies lawfully exploited market
New Zealand's power companies have been found to have lawfully exploited their market power to raise wholesale electricity prices.
A Commerce Commission report into Contact, Genesis, Meridian and Mighty River Power clears the four companies of any price fixing. It says they did not take advantage of market power for any anti-competitive purpose.
But it has found the four companies legally used market power to charge an extra $4.3 billion, more than they would have earned had the conditions been competitive from 2001 to 2007.
The commission has also issued a warning to TrustPower for attempting to enter into an anti-competitive agreement with Genesis in 2004.
Now $4.3b sounds like a lot, it is in one lump sum, but how much is it out of pockets monthly?
According to the ‘About us’ pages on their websites, Meridian, Mighty River Power, Contact and Genesis have 1.83 million customers between them.
$4.3b, over 7 years, across 1.83 million users is $28 per month, per user (about $335 per year, or $2350 over the whole 7 years for each user)…so it is significant, but here’s the thing, the average power bill in New Zealand is around $150 per month, even if we take back the $30 that they are stealing from us, we are still paying around 50% more than Australia does per month for power…why?
April 1st this year Austraia had an across the board power hike of 20% to…wait for it, just under $90 per month on average.
If you look at the OECD tables, NZ uses less power per person in every category than Australia, but we pay more.
Should something be done about these soulless companies, remembering that three are owned by us, and how there are the modern reincarnation of Vikings, raping and pillaging our pockets?
Yes!
Should our government explain to us why we are paying so much more for power, when we are all using less, than Australia?
A much, much louder YES!
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Support Petra
Hey there, my old mate Petra Bagust is doing the 40 hour famine this weekend. We are finishing it on Sunday night at 9.30pm on air at Newstalk ZB.
If you want to support her, and by doing so support World Vision, go here https://www.famine.org.nz/faminebook.aspx?username=petra
If you want to support her, and by doing so support World Vision, go here https://www.famine.org.nz/faminebook.aspx?username=petra
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Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Lobby Groups need to look....before they leap!
Jimmy Mason of Christchurch was accused of assault in January of 2008, he informed media and sundry that all he did was flicked his son's ear in a serious situation when he needed to get his attention immediately.
I thought at the time this doesn't sound right, however opponents of Sue Bradford's so called anti smacking bill came out in force.
www.FamilyFirst.org.nz
Jan 30 2008
[Jimmy] Mason, who complained about the way the incident was handled by the police, said he flicked son Seth after a biking accident involving his two-year-old son, Zach, who had injured his eye. Mason was given a warning by police after the incident, which he wanted removed from his record.....
Family First national director Bob McCoskrie was astounded to be told Mason had been charged. "That's amazing," he said. "That's going to be a test case. I think everybody has been waiting for a case like this to go before a judge so we can get a new interpretation of the law. It's an uncertain law, which is the worst part of it. Some say it totally bans smacking and some say it doesn't." McCoskrie said his organisation could be interested in helping Mason, although it had not yet been asked to do so.
www.familyintergrity.org.nz
Jan 16, 2008
Seth had stopped at the corner. He looked down at his brother, lying on the ground, slipping in and out of consciousness. He saw the concern on his dad’s face, and heard him say “wait Seth, we have to look after Zach”. Whether or not he understood how serious the situation, it was with loving fatherly discipline that Jimmy flicked his son on the ear as he started peddling away.
So we have this set up as good father being pushed around by PC police and legal system...I still wasn't convinced, then the police added their bit in...
www.TVNZ.co.nz
Jan 29 2008
Police say anti-smacking legislation or not, Jimmy Mason would still have been charged.
So if the police said it would have been an assault charge before the new legislation...surely it must be more serious that an 'ear flick'
Well it's 15 months or so later, and we have a result...take special note of the witnesses account where she says, "... Mason then flicked the ear of the older boy and punched him in the face"
Punched him in the face...hmmmm.
The full story from www.NZHerald.co.nz
Guilty verdict in anti-smacking case
A jury has returned its verdict in the case of a Christchurch man in what has been viewed as a test of the controversial 'anti-smacking' law.
50-year-old Jimmy Mason was found guilty on one charge of assaulting his four-year-old son in December 2007. The charge related to allegations that he flicked his son's ear and punched him.
Mason was found not guilty on two other charges relating to accusations that he pushed over the bicycles of the four-year-old and another son, aged two, while they were still on them.
Judge Michael Crosbie told the jury he could understand the verdict they had delivered. He said it implied acceptance of the evidence from the people who witnessed the incident.
Mason has been remanded on bail and is scheduled to be sentenced on June 17.
The guilty verdict carries a maximum penalty of one year's imprisonment. However Judge Crosbie said he would consider the option of supervision in order to enable Mason to seek help for anger management.
Mason had denied all of the charges.
During the trial a witness said that she saw the accused punch his son and flick his ear.
Belinda Payne told the court she saw Mason at the Bridge of Remembrance where the two boys were riding their bikes.
She says he was yelling and telling off the boys. Ms Payne says Mason lifted up the bikes while the boys were still on them and forced them down onto the ground.
She says Mason then flicked the ear of the older boy and punched him in the face.
Mason's defence lawyer has told the court his client used reasonable force.
The Crown urged the jury not to make the case a test of the anti-smacking laws. They were told they should not use the case to send any sort of message to the Government about their views on physical punishment.
Mason's lawyer Liz Bulger wrapped up by saying her client was trying to discipline his boys after an earlier bike crash in a busy part of town.
She appealed to the jury members who are parents to remember what it is like to control toddlers.
Can anyone say retraction lobby groups?
I thought at the time this doesn't sound right, however opponents of Sue Bradford's so called anti smacking bill came out in force.
www.FamilyFirst.org.nz
Jan 30 2008
[Jimmy] Mason, who complained about the way the incident was handled by the police, said he flicked son Seth after a biking accident involving his two-year-old son, Zach, who had injured his eye. Mason was given a warning by police after the incident, which he wanted removed from his record.....
Family First national director Bob McCoskrie was astounded to be told Mason had been charged. "That's amazing," he said. "That's going to be a test case. I think everybody has been waiting for a case like this to go before a judge so we can get a new interpretation of the law. It's an uncertain law, which is the worst part of it. Some say it totally bans smacking and some say it doesn't." McCoskrie said his organisation could be interested in helping Mason, although it had not yet been asked to do so.
www.familyintergrity.org.nz
Jan 16, 2008
Seth had stopped at the corner. He looked down at his brother, lying on the ground, slipping in and out of consciousness. He saw the concern on his dad’s face, and heard him say “wait Seth, we have to look after Zach”. Whether or not he understood how serious the situation, it was with loving fatherly discipline that Jimmy flicked his son on the ear as he started peddling away.
So we have this set up as good father being pushed around by PC police and legal system...I still wasn't convinced, then the police added their bit in...
www.TVNZ.co.nz
Jan 29 2008
Police say anti-smacking legislation or not, Jimmy Mason would still have been charged.
So if the police said it would have been an assault charge before the new legislation...surely it must be more serious that an 'ear flick'
Well it's 15 months or so later, and we have a result...take special note of the witnesses account where she says, "... Mason then flicked the ear of the older boy and punched him in the face"
Punched him in the face...hmmmm.
The full story from www.NZHerald.co.nz
Guilty verdict in anti-smacking case
A jury has returned its verdict in the case of a Christchurch man in what has been viewed as a test of the controversial 'anti-smacking' law.
50-year-old Jimmy Mason was found guilty on one charge of assaulting his four-year-old son in December 2007. The charge related to allegations that he flicked his son's ear and punched him.
Mason was found not guilty on two other charges relating to accusations that he pushed over the bicycles of the four-year-old and another son, aged two, while they were still on them.
Judge Michael Crosbie told the jury he could understand the verdict they had delivered. He said it implied acceptance of the evidence from the people who witnessed the incident.
Mason has been remanded on bail and is scheduled to be sentenced on June 17.
The guilty verdict carries a maximum penalty of one year's imprisonment. However Judge Crosbie said he would consider the option of supervision in order to enable Mason to seek help for anger management.
Mason had denied all of the charges.
During the trial a witness said that she saw the accused punch his son and flick his ear.
Belinda Payne told the court she saw Mason at the Bridge of Remembrance where the two boys were riding their bikes.
She says he was yelling and telling off the boys. Ms Payne says Mason lifted up the bikes while the boys were still on them and forced them down onto the ground.
She says Mason then flicked the ear of the older boy and punched him in the face.
Mason's defence lawyer has told the court his client used reasonable force.
The Crown urged the jury not to make the case a test of the anti-smacking laws. They were told they should not use the case to send any sort of message to the Government about their views on physical punishment.
Mason's lawyer Liz Bulger wrapped up by saying her client was trying to discipline his boys after an earlier bike crash in a busy part of town.
She appealed to the jury members who are parents to remember what it is like to control toddlers.
Can anyone say retraction lobby groups?
>>
Monday, May 18, 2009
People are idiots
I know that sounds offensive, I don't mean to be, but I just can't believe that people didn't know about how Pigs are farmed.
It's been widely reported over many years that pigs are treated like this, so are chickens, so are some cattle and all meats that we like to get as cheap as possible...I don't buy the 'naive' defence that Mike King has thrown out there.
People who are paid huge money are responsible for knowing what they are promoting, however in saying that, I think we all know...we've all been told, and deep down we ignore it.
Jamie Oliver has been banging on about this for years on our screens, we know about our chicken eggs...and we choose to buy them.
What normally happens is there is hub-bub for a few days, then it dies away for a few years until next time.
Here's the thing, if you care about the state of pig farming, there's really only one thing you can do...buy organic/free range pork...there is power in the dollar.
Why did Hummer stop making their bigger H series....Was it because they were unbelievably thirsty when it comes to gas? No. Was it because they are bad for the economy? No. Was it because they were impractable when it came to society...too big for car parks etc..? No. It was because Americans stopped buying them.
If you stop buying them...they disappear, it's up to you...or you can let it fall away and feign shock again in 3 years when the story comes out again.
It's been widely reported over many years that pigs are treated like this, so are chickens, so are some cattle and all meats that we like to get as cheap as possible...I don't buy the 'naive' defence that Mike King has thrown out there.
People who are paid huge money are responsible for knowing what they are promoting, however in saying that, I think we all know...we've all been told, and deep down we ignore it.
Jamie Oliver has been banging on about this for years on our screens, we know about our chicken eggs...and we choose to buy them.
What normally happens is there is hub-bub for a few days, then it dies away for a few years until next time.
Here's the thing, if you care about the state of pig farming, there's really only one thing you can do...buy organic/free range pork...there is power in the dollar.
Why did Hummer stop making their bigger H series....Was it because they were unbelievably thirsty when it comes to gas? No. Was it because they are bad for the economy? No. Was it because they were impractable when it came to society...too big for car parks etc..? No. It was because Americans stopped buying them.
If you stop buying them...they disappear, it's up to you...or you can let it fall away and feign shock again in 3 years when the story comes out again.
>>
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Marriage, Church and The State
| The Colbert Report | Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |||
| Douglas Kmiec | ||||
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Saturday, May 16, 2009
Matty Johns
So the latest in this saga came out yesterday, and this morning one of the new central character's father called me up
Let me firstly state this, I think that the idea of a group sex 'gang bang/orgy' or whatever is really gross, in fact I think its disgusting and perverted. It doesn't change the crucifixion though of Matthew Johns.
Tania Boyd came our yesterday to support the Police story and Matthew John. The story fro TVNZ can be seen here
This morning, Peter identified himself as Tania's father reiterated what she had told TVNZ
Here's my question, if the police said there was no case to answer 7 years ago, if the police cleared all players of wrongdoing 7 years ago, and they are not opening a new case as there is no new evidence, and if even the police are calling this "an issue of morality", if Matty Johns and his wife worked this out 7 years ago, if 'Claire' was bragging about her 'conquests' at the time of the group sex... then what the hell are ABC and Four Corners even running this story for...other than to ruin the career of Matty Johns.
Let me firstly state this, I think that the idea of a group sex 'gang bang/orgy' or whatever is really gross, in fact I think its disgusting and perverted. It doesn't change the crucifixion though of Matthew Johns.
Tania Boyd came our yesterday to support the Police story and Matthew John. The story fro TVNZ can be seen here
This morning, Peter identified himself as Tania's father reiterated what she had told TVNZ
Discover Simple, Private Sharing at Drop.io
Here's my question, if the police said there was no case to answer 7 years ago, if the police cleared all players of wrongdoing 7 years ago, and they are not opening a new case as there is no new evidence, and if even the police are calling this "an issue of morality", if Matty Johns and his wife worked this out 7 years ago, if 'Claire' was bragging about her 'conquests' at the time of the group sex... then what the hell are ABC and Four Corners even running this story for...other than to ruin the career of Matty Johns.
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Sunday, May 10, 2009
Scientists for and against Climate Change/Global Warming
Since Ian Wishart's release of Air Con, where it states that 31,000 scientists have signed a document stating they disagree with the theory of Anthropogenic Global Warming, and Leighton Smith's interview with Professor Bob Carter, where Professor Carter stated that the U.N claims 2,000 Scientists that agree with the theory, but he said it was more like 350 or so and you can't find a list of names anywhere, I thought...geez, if that's the case I'd like to see it.
So I went looking.
To see the 31,000 scientists petition, click here
To see the UN scientists....ummmm, send me a link if you can find them :o)
So I went looking.
To see the 31,000 scientists petition, click here
To see the UN scientists....ummmm, send me a link if you can find them :o)
>>
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