Quotable quote

 

“No one will understand politics until they understand that politicians are not trying to solve our problems. They are trying to solve their own problems - of which getting elected & re-elected are number 1 and number 2. Whatever is number 3 is far behind.” 

– Thomas Sowell

Thomas Sowell is an American economist, writer, and social theorist who currently serves as a Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. He is known for his old-fashioned assessments of economic theories and has authored over 30 books. He is considered one of the greatest African-American thinkers of his generation.

Auckland 10 minutes closer

The new 18.5km expressway between Puhoi and Warkworth was officially opened last week that will cut at least 10 minutes off the trip between Whangarei and Auckland. The Prime Minister did the ribbon-cutting honours. It must have been a little uncomfortable for him. 

When National announced the motorway extension in 2011, Chris Hipkins mocked the project. He disparagingly called it a "holiday highway" and said the money should be used for projects like Auckland’s city rail link. 

He expressed a different view at the official (photo opportunity) opening. There he described it as a “strategic piece of infrastructure" that will deliver "a safer, more resilient and reliable route"!

Unable to find locals to change a tyre

1News ran a story recently about a tyre company in Kaikohe that had been unable to fill a job vacancy locally. 

The story started: “It's been six weeks since Roger Kopoken shifted to the Northland town of Kaikohe from the Philippines to fill a job that'd been advertised for months.” 

The business owners said, "[Roger] is perfectly ready to pick up the tools and get stuck in."

Why are there no local people ready to pick up the tools and get stuck in? 

To read the 1News item go to https://www.1news.co.nz/2023/06/08/unable-to-find-kiwis-employers-are-hiring-from-overseas/

Hundertwa$$er

The future of the Hundertwasser Art Centre (HAC) is uncertain. A staff report tabled at a recent Council meeting confirmed losses for the current year (to the end of June 2023) are likely to be around $800,000 and between $450,000 and $550,000 next year.  It says. The report said, “Without council intervention and support, the Trust will become insolvent and will be liquidated…”

The council is now drawing on a contingency fund set up to cover operating losses, but most of that funding has been drawn or will be drawn within the next 12 months. In short, the WDC and the Trust will need to turn the losses around. It will be hoping for a recovery in international tourists, but questions are again being asked about its long-term viability and the potential ongoing costs to ratepayers.  

The council report may be found here >>> (agenda item starts on page 118)

What will become of Forum North?

The Whangarei District Council has moved into its new Civic Centre offices, which they say has cost $59 million. But what will happen with the now vacant Forum North building?

Mayor Vince Cocurullo said WDC had been waiting until it moved out of Forum North, to proceed further with any future direction for Forum North.

Talks have been underway with the Forum North Trust. In 2022 the Northern Advocate reported the Trust chairman said Forum North should be a “cultural and education precinct”, that “would revolutionise Northlanders’ theatre experiences”.

Sounds like another ratepayer-subsidised trust in the making.

Garrick Tremain cartoon - free speech

 

The Tax System and Ten Beers

Once a week ten mates go out for beer at their local pub. The bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this...

The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.

The fifth would pay $1.

The sixth would pay $3.

The seventh would pay $7.

The eighth would pay $12.

The ninth would pay $18.

And the tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.　

So, that's what they decided to do – because David Parker, the Revenue Minister, says that’s fair.

Reality Check Media

There’s a new media player in town – Reality Check Radio – and it’s taking on the mainstream (legacy) media. Improvements in online speed and data capacity is presenting a new frontier of citizen broadcasting and threatening the traditional gatekeepers of “truth”.

300 local jobs lost due to tribal infighting

by Frank Newman (this article first appeared in nzcpr.com) 

Chief of War is an action drama set in 18th-century Hawaii. The storyline is about four warring tribes uniting against a much more powerful colonial invader. Presumably, the plot will be along the lines of a heroic chief using super-human qualities to unite the proud and virtuous tribal folk in order to defeat the imperial evil to establish the utopian happily-ever-after Kingdom of Hawaii. It is actually based on some truth in that the Kingdom of Hawaii was formed in the late 18th century. The rest is fiction. The actual history following tribal unification was one of decline until Hawaii was annexed to the United States 100 years later. Needless to say, a sequel is unlikely to feature this aspect of history.  

That aside, Chief of War appears to be a good yarn commercially suited to a woke audience and Harvard University academics.

It has been billed as “the biggest Indigenous series ever made”. There is no question it is a big deal financially, with a production budget of US$340 million for the nine episodes.

Wasted votes

In the 2020 general election, 225,000 votes were cast for minor parties that failed to reach the 5% threshold to gain seats in Parliament. Those votes were in effect wasted. That was 7.8% of the total vote or nine seats of the 120 seats in Parliament.

It is therefore no surprise a great deal of attention is turning to how that wasted vote can be united into a single voting bloc.

Two groups are attempting to do exactly that.