It's starting again ...

Nico-Nazis have sucessfully banned smoking from just about everywhere, jacked up the price to well beyond the costs and have reduced the ability of stores to sell a legal product to adults.

(Yes, Nico-Nazis is an appropriate term - see here.)

Now it's alcohols turn. Pretty soon you won't be able to buy a drink in a bar without paying $20 for a pint of beer (which cannot have any point of sale advertising or product display) and you won't be allowed to have alcohol on a friday night in workplaces.

Of course, the solution is not to restrict tobacco and alcohol, but to make people pay for the choices they make. If you want to smoke or if binge-drinking is your thing, private health insurance costs would make you think twice.

Disclaimer: I don't smoke and I'm a moderate drinker.

Scoop takes a pot-shot about comments on Robson

Media site Scoop has published an article on Robson's visit to Cuba. In it is a remark:

"Thankfully for Robson and Wendy Petrie [TVNZ News reader who recently holidayed in Cuba] there’s no penalty for visiting Cuba as a New Zealand citizen other than drawing the ire of extreme right wing bloggers."

That's strecthing the truth! My comments, and the comments on other blogs such as David Farrer's criticise his support for the Cuban justice system - not the fact that Matt Robson went there. I also criticised Cuba's Communist system - I pointed out that Cuba is crippled by government debt that will have to be repaid by Cubans long after Castro is gone.

However, I can't object to the extreme right wing comments - I am a radical free-marketeer and a moderate social liberterian! I do get upset when collectivists and social conservatives like Kyle Chapman and the National Front get called right-wing. After all Mussolini was a communist party member before breaking with them and founding a fascist party. (Sorry, I'm digressing)

Perhaps Mr Robson's support of The Wananga could also be questioned - I want to know if they did pay for him to go to Cuba? After all his original Newsletter says "Why am I in Cuba you ask? Because with representatives of Te Wananga o Aotearoa I have been at a UN conference on education and literacy attended by over 5000 delegates, many from Latin America."

Perhaps Ken Shirley might want to do some more digging?

UPDATE: Antartic Lemur has a really good article on this - read it here!

Cullen Financial Advisory Service

Poor Michael Cullen - he wants us to invest in something other than residential housing.

So, let's give Cullen some advice.

- Firstly, drop the 'social wage' nonsense. Since hitting office you've raise petrol taxes, charges for this, that and t'other. Admit that this has left households paying more in tax today compared to 1999. Cut personal taxes, especially for those in middle income brackets. (Who don't invest in business.)

- Secondly, make investing in business a more attractive option. Ease restrictive labour laws, repeal the hundreds of regulations that Government throw onto business each year. Cut company tax so residential housing has a less attractive tax benefit.

- Thirdly, stop government from adding costs to building houses. If councils stop harassing people who want to build on their own land the cost of new developments will fall. In turn, existing houses will fall in value (replacement cost being less than the capital cost) and those in housing for capital gain will find other more attractive investments.

- Finally, give every taxpayer an individual account in the Cullen Fund. Make it theirs to withdraw when they hit 60 (or 65) to buy an annunity, or blow or whatever. Just don't give them National Super.

Implement this and NZers will be much happier investing in business and not housing. You won't even need to tell them!

Free the Imprisoned Bloggers

FREE MOJTABA AND ARASH

See this link or here.

Isn't this ironic?

On Wednesday, United Future MP put out a Press Release attacking ACT for voting against the amendments to extend prison sentence for those with Child Pornography. (I would out a link in, but the release seems to have been erased with efficiency that would please the Ministry of Truth.)

Shortly afterwards, Deborah Coddington put out a press release putting the record straight - that ACT had voted for the increased prison sentence.

Marc Alexander never put out a retraction, amendment or explanation.

But the ironic thing is today Marc published his weekly column - 'Marc my Words' - the title - "Putting the Record Straight"

Having said that, Marc explains Green politics very well:

"Undoubtedly, by ‘fairer’ [Jeanette Fitzsimons] means stripping wealth from those who create it to distribute to those who don’t; by ‘gentler’ she means defending Green policies with ‘soft logic’; and by ‘cleaner’ I assume she is referring to the pockets and wallets of hardworking Kiwis after her policies have picked them!"

This blogger is 33 today!

So it's a time to reflect: New Starts: Getting engaged to Chaucey was probably the highlight(less than three months to the wedding now). Also 'Scorch' (an ex-feral kitten) has adopted our house.

Old endings: Getting that dissolution felt good! Also leaving ACT after 7 years as a member - that was a painful, even now it hurts a little bit. Still it was the right thing to do.

Looking forward to: The wedding and the honeymoon - almost 7 weeks in Europe!

Not looking forward to: The credit card bill when we get back. (urgh)

What am I doing today: Cycling to work to take advantage of the free breakfast at Civic Square, then going to work. After work I am catching up with my brother at Lovelocks (A bar with 'No music, only sport') for a drink. What Chaucey has planned for me after that I don't know.

Please forward presents direct to me - if you need a delivery address email me and I will oblige.

The Revolution will not be Televised ...

Went for a walk in Wellington today to place a new letterbox and came across the Air Force staging a coup at Parliament - at least they all had high-powered rifles. They all marched into the basement shortly after this picture was taken.



So tomorrow Helen will be giving her Press Conference with a barrel stuck between her shoulder blades from behind the curtains in the Beehive Theatrette.

Guess they finally had enough of cancelling the F16 contract, Orion upgrades, Hercules replacements, etc.

A Pair of Mountain Goats

Have spent the morning orienteering at Whiteria Park in Titahi Bay.

Here's Chaucey punching in at a control. (Waypoint):

Morning Tea, anyone?

Yes, that annual obligation rolls around again. It's not until Wednesday next week but I thought I should get it out of the way, and no other day seemed to suit.

I was going to include a picture of the massive banana cake I baked last night (plus 18 fruit muffins) but my workmates devoured most of it before I got a chance. So here is a picture of what remained 15 minutes later.



Many compliments recieved for my baking, living up to my standards. Last year I was equal runner-up in the department 'bake-off'.

Simon the Legend

Simon at work is a legend. He managed to get onto the giant screen at the sevens for over a minute, then on Monday this was on Page A9 of the DomPost:


By my calculations: A fashion-challenged man is dealt to by the good natured crowd for his taste in footwear and breaches.

More on Robson in Cuba

I've reflected on what I said yesterday. Nope, I haven't changed my mind - Robson should be ashamed.

But I realised I never covered the lunacy of the scheme Robson admires.

I've been horrified by the thought that a drug dealer could become a nurse - just think of the access to all the illegal drugs a nurse has! How about training a fraudster becoming an accountant? Or a child molester to be a teacher?

Robson really has lost the plot.

If you like it so much then stay there, Mr Robson

Matt Robson, deputy leader of the Progressive Party, is in Havana. He likes it so much he dedicates most of his newsletter to praising Cuba.

He even visited prisons and commented on how wonderful they were - While he was there did he meet:

* Paul Rivero, imprisoned for 20 years for unspecified subversive activities. (Evidence against Rivero included owning a chair that a US diplomat had once sat in.)
* Omar Rodriguez Saludes, imprision for 27 years for disseminating a photograph of Cuban poverty.
* Dr Oscar Elias Biscet, arrested in December 2002 for teaching others about international human rights practices. Three other people who had been arrested with Dr. Biscet were convicted in May of this year for the "crime" of studying the Universal Declaration of Human Rights at a private home in Havana.
* Raul Rivero, who last year was awarded the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Award. However, this accomplished poet and journalist was not able to pick up his prize and enjoy what should have been one of the highlights of his professional career. He too is serving a 20-year sentence in a Cuban jail.
* Marta Beatriz Roque spent 3-1/2 years in prison in the late 1990s for the crime of “peaceful” sedition. This “crime” is defined as anything that “perturbs” the socialist order. In Marta’s case that involved taking the Communist Party up on its request for public comments on a draft 5-year plan. Marta was out for 4 years, and then returned to jail with a 20-year sentence last year. Her health has been poor throughout her ordeals and she remains in a military hospital.

(I could go on for quite some time)

So it's no surprise that when Cuba tells its citizens to become doctors and be paid the same wage as a factory worker they comply.

So, how does Cuba pay for this wonderful health and education system? Government Debt is 200% of GDP. (New Zealand's is about 35% of GDP, most of that a hangover of the days that Muldoon tried to run this country like Cuba.)

Cuba is a country run by an evil regime, Mr Robson - shame on you for supporting it in your newsletter!

Sevens Heaven

What a great day - here's the Kenyan's doing their cool dance:



Here's Samoa scoring a try against New Zealand.

Click here to download video - file size 280k

(Sorry about the low quality, recorded it with my Palm)

Best of all NZ won, Kenya won, and England got beaten by Fiji and Scotland!

Many thanks to Brendan at the corporate box for the excellent continuous supply of Heinies.

Weather and the Weekend

Chaucey is flying back from Auckland tonight - her flight is already one hour late. It was due to leave about now but is delayed for an hour. Hopefully the fog visible in Cook Straight will stay way until she gets back.

Tomorrow I'm off to the Sevens, thanks to one generous vendor who is hosting me at a corporate box. Its located about level with the dead ball line on the end closest to the giant screen - on the left side if you are looking at the screen.

Do think of me as I have another free drink and tuck into the plentiful food - yes, I love my job today!

Give 'em a break

This one has been bubbling for a while, now the Tama Iti episode has made it boil over.

I've got a little concerned about the critics of the Police handling of the Tama Iti shotgun incident. From what I saw on television Tama Iti looked like he had brandished a shotgun at the Waitangi Tribunal members, then fired into the flag on the ground (while holding the gun at his hip - cringe)

The police recieved a complaint, and investigated. Tama Iti has now been arrested and charged with firearms offences.

Now Wednesday Stephen Franks and others led an attack on the Police Minister about the delay from the incident to the arrest. The Minister simply said that it was up to the Police to investigate and charge Iti when the investigation was complete. That was the end of it as far as I could see.

But no, there were allegations that Iti was not being charged because he was a Maori radical.

Now the typical policeman would not be impressed by this allegation. The police do an excellent job, often in very trying situations.

These allegations as a growing 'conspiracy theory' that our law and order machines - the police and the courts - are not producing the correct outcomes becuase of political pressures. I never criticise the Police or any part of the court system for any investigation or verdict. (I do have problems with some sentencing.)

NZers have gotten very good at denouncing the outcomes of trials from what they see in 30 seconds of television or 4 inches of newspaper article each day. But if you ever sit at the back of a court for a whole trial, start to finish, you would have a different perspective on it.

How can we say that Scott Watson or David Bain are innocent when 12 people have listened to all the evidence presented - for and against - and then made up their minds on that basis.

The one murder case I sat through from start to finish was not exciting at all - most of it was spent cataloguing every item related to the investigation, proving a chain of evidence (including that the victim found in the street was the same person who died in Hospital the following day) and the interview in which the accused gave his statement to the police.

Before I had seen the trial I was afraid the accused would get the charge reduced to Manslaughter. After seeing the evidence I was clear that there was no chance of it. After 6 hours of deliberation the jury returned - guilty of murder.

So before you criticise the police for being too slow to investigate you have to remember the bar for conviction is very high. Only a thorough investigation of the incident will ensure that all the gaps in the prosecution are filled.