Hard News: Circumstance and coincidence
206 Responses
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I don’t buy DPF’s complete dismissiveness as for me there are clearly questions here which need answering, but I agree with his comment about the spooky sinister music. When journos have something real, they shouldn’t need to decorate it with such artistic junk which is typically more about triggering an emotional conclusion from an audience instead of an objective one.
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Craig Ranapia, in reply to
but I agree with his comment about the spooky sinister music. When journos have something real, they shouldn’t need to decorate it with such artistic junk which is typically more about triggering an emotional conclusion from an audience instead of an objective one.
Oath – it also show a distasteful level of condescension towards the audience.
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Euan Mason, in reply to
Yes. It’s one thing for a PM to decline to talk about security matters (as they have all done), but another to flat-out lie instead. Struck me he’s not very good at it either. Should avoid poker.
This, more than anything else, will keep the story alive. Is he really just a vicarious liar? I doubt it. There will be a reason, and that mystery will arouse the attention of journalists.
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MxDEJ, in reply to
It also seems to represent a really remarkable degree of disorganisation to have appointed Mataparae to such an important role and then announce a month later that he’d be moving on to be governor general.
Random thought crossed with a genuine question: Was there some pressing reason to move Mateparae out of NZDF, even if it meant bouncing him in and out of the GCSB?
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bob daktari, in reply to
I don’t buy DPF’s complete dismissiveness as for me there are clearly questions here which need answering,
His complete dismissiveness all but screams Campbell is onto something which the story alludes to but hasn't quite nailed yet - I doubt we the public will ever know the real story but like all things sinister and spy related we don't have to, we just need for our representatives to do right by us the voters and citizens of this nation not those of other nations
As for the alleged lies told by Key - its quite a feat he has with memory, over certain topics he seems to have serious memory impairments (to the point we should perhaps be worried about our countries leader) and yet others complete clarity - all of which adds to the leap to conspiracy theories... which can only be solved by, transparency honesty and openness, that stuff he campaigned and promised when National first came to power under his leadership
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at the behest of the US, which wanted to refocus its intelligence activity towards the protection of intellectual property interests
This is the pattern of everything we have seen coming out of the US for at least a decade. The power they are seeking, and have achieved, over all internet users is scary. It has been carried out behalf of private enterprise. It has nothing to do with public interest or even, good economics.
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Glenn Pearce, in reply to
Well they needed a new GG and the Mad Butcher was busy.
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Key has just been pressed on the issues at Question Time.
- He has admitted that *both* meetings with Fletcher were organised by his office.
- But he insists he didn’t discuss the GCSB role at all with Fletcher at the breakfast meeting.
- Asked about his false statement that Rennie came to him with the proposal to hire Fletcher: "that was my recollection at the time".
- He “can’t be sure” whether DPMC briefed him about Kim Dotcom on December 14.
The last one is absurd. He’s been repeatedly pressed on his foreknowledge of Dotcom and insisted he’d never even heard of the guy until January 19. Now he says he hasn’t even checked to see whether he got a briefing on Dotcom from his own department?
How on earth does he get away with this stuff?
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Sacha, in reply to
His complete dismissiveness all but screams Campbell is onto something
that and conveniently leaving out parts of the timeline that don't suit Farrar's spin.
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Sacha, in reply to
How on earth does he get away with this stuff?
Damn good question. When someone in a position of power is demonstrably lying, I expect the checks and balances in the system (in this case, opposition and media) to do their fricken jobs and call him on it.
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Laurie Fleming, in reply to
So you don't check what politicians say then?
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Alex Coleman, in reply to
How on earth does he get away with this stuff?
I dunno.
But there is a weird standard of proof that in all this stuff.
Everyone has to make their own call obviously, but for me it comes down to this. We need intelligence services, and they will operate in secret to a large degree.
I'm ok with that as long as I trust the PM with it. But that trust is where it is, that's where the standard of proof lies.
I don't care if a journalist 'reaches' to make a point, I don't care if a theory doesn't have all the facts; I don't demand 'beyond reasonable doubt' that the PM lied in order to lose that trust. Once things go bad, it's his job to demonstrate to me that he deserves my trust.
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Question 1 today:
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Idiot Savant, in reply to
How on earth does he get away with this stuff?
By abusing the respect too many kiwis have for his office.
Fortunately that respect is eroding, along with deference generally, limiting his ability to pull such stunts in future. And the more he does it, the faster it erodes.
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Aidan, in reply to
Does he always issue such terse replies or just seeking to deny oxygen/not get caught in lie?
Is there no mechanism for a "question on notice" or require an undertaking for the PM to actually make some enquiries with departments etc to find out actual information?
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Trevor Nicholls, in reply to
Is he really just a vicarious liar?
Key personality traits: dishonesty and premature relaxation.
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Pete George, in reply to
Whenever possible. They often don't answer. It's a bit hard finding out what the PM says to the GCSB, any suggestions on how to find this out let me or John Campbell know.
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Steve Barnes, in reply to
I expected to see followups this story on our mainstream media front pages this morning. But there's nothing!
Well there was... This yesterday
I would consider Scoop to be mainstream these days, they publish the entire press release instead of pretending its a story one of their "journalists" has ritten (yes, I studied the 3 R's at school, I'm pretty good at rithmetic too so I am as qualified as they) like the Herald or one of the other tabloids we have posing as " 'papers".
To dismiss Campbell's story, as DPF has done, dismisses the fact that most people in this country only read the headlines and fail to see timelines and connections between, seemingly separate stories (excuse the allusion to alliteration, although analysis of average awareness amongst any average adult to add 1+1 avoids accurate assumption, ay?)
So I was really quite pleased to see the facts laid bare for the voting public. He actually does some good work, that Campbell. -
Steve Barnes, in reply to
They often don’t answer. It’s a bit hard finding out what the PM says…
"Well, I can't tell you about that because I don't know but I will tell you this.... [insert bullshit blaming everything on Labour here]
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Lilith __, in reply to
last night's story felt like a Winston Peters-style smoking gun rather than an actual conspiracy.
Like the Winebox?
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Angela Hart, in reply to
He actually does some good work, that Campbell.
once in a while
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Angela Hart, in reply to
"Well, I can't tell you about that because I don't know but I will tell you this.... [insert bullshit blaming everything on Labour here]
The question is will this story result in any real change?
From the posts here it would seem that many of us neither believe nor trust our affable PM. Is that enough to force change? -
Ianmac, in reply to
Real change Angela? Once people have a belief in someone it is likely to hold firm for a long time. When presented with information that contradicts the belief we tend to hang on and hang on because it challenges us to doubt our original judgement. (Marriage for example.) But once a trickle of doubt creeps in the mind starts doubting then looking sceptically.
Many people have doubted Mr Key. But his carefully manufactured "Aw shucks" persona papers over the cracks until tomorrow or next week when the trickle becomes a flood. Even for those embedded in loyalty to the Party like Michelle Boag. -
Maybe John Key's office leaked some info to John Campbell to take the heat off Judith Collins. That's just the sort of top bloke he is and shows what a real leader does for his embattled troops.
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Steve Barnes, in reply to
Random thought crossed with a genuine question: Was there some pressing reason to move Mateparae out of NZDF, even if it meant bouncing him in and out of the GCSB?
I see where you are going with that but I see it the other way round. They needed to put someone in there after the “resignation” of this guy…
Former spy agency boss Sir Bruce Ferguson says Prime Minister John Key must be “smoking dope” for linking failings at the bureau to him and other former directors with a military or defence background.
Why would he say such a thing?.
Retired commander signals abuse cover-upLast night, Sir Bruce joined a panel on TVNZ’s Media7, seated alongside author Nicky Hager, author of the recently released book Other People’s Wars.
The controversial book claims military officials have not revealed the true extent of their operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.
During the recording of an online segment, Media7 host Russell Brown asked Sir Bruce what he thought of Kiwi soldiers blowing the whistle on prisoner abuse in Afghanistan.Well Russ? What did he have to say?
Does this go far deeper than we know?.
Still fits with drone attacks…
Sir Bruce would have frowned on that, ungentlemanly don’t you know.
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