Hard News: Congratulations, Mr Key
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Prebble's just suggested that Act stay out of formally being part of the gov't, as in the past the coalition parties have ended up as toast.
So do Act want to be in gov't or not ? This is getting weird. -
__I imagined bands of them roaming St Stephen's Ave, clutching bottles of pinot gris__
Ha.
"Braaaaains... lovely-lamb-brains-sauteed-in-a-little-white-wine-from-Antoines..."I LOL'd.
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Lx,
Remember your post of a few weeks ago revealing the homophobic comments from the National candidate in the electorate ...?
I assure you, none of our community here have forgotten being compared to Stephen Franks's dog. Grant's victory is extra sweet in light of that, but for my part I would have voted for (almost) anyone BUT Stephen Franks following that piece of unnecessary nastiness.
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Prebble's just suggested that Act stay out of formally being part of the gov't, as in the past the coalition parties have ended up as toast.
So do Act want to be in gov't or not ? This is getting weird.Wasn't that weird? More specifically, he seemed to suggest it as a response to not getting Douglas in Cabinet. It was another threat.
These people genuinely seem to regard pre-election undertakings as there to be abandoned.
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Russell - exactly how many down on last election was the Auckland Central turnout ? I heard Tizard on the radio claiming it was 12,000 down. I find that hard to believe, anyone know ?
Don't know, but Brent Edwards said turnouts in the South Auckland electorates were 8-9000 down.
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So given the apparently horrible assault on personal freedom that was the curly lightbulbs (thanks Mr Slack for that turn o phrase), are National repealing the energy efficiency standards for lightbulbs?
:>
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I've always thought very highly of Bill English. Brian Easton evidently has some regard for him too (2006 Listener article about English).
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On Douglas:
After the description that led me to take a look I was surprised to see a guy who appeared to be making good sense in his summation of recent times and only stating the obvious about the future.
You really thought his patronising rant about voters having been "bribed with their own money" for the last three years cut to the quick of the financial crisis? The public accounts are not the problem.
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Low point Saturday night: Rodney Hide.
"I'm just proud to have run a clean campaign and to have stuck to the issues."
Meanwhile, Dougless: "If I get in I'll do heaps of stuff."
And again, this morning, Radio NZ: "The important thing for us now is to take action regtarding, umm, the issues that face us."
What might those be, Rog?
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I don't know if it's cognitive dissonance or something, but after I'd got over the initial disappointment I feel like this election was probably the best way to ensure more centre-left government over the long-term. 50.1% voted for National-ACT-UF and that will probably drop below 50 with specials and overseas votes. If that's the best the three 'major' right parties can do at this point in time (major economic crisis, 9 years of a Labour government, etc.) then I can't see that it'll be easy for them to get back in in 2011 ... unless John Key can really transform National into a truly central, inclusive party ... but then who would all the conservative right voters go for?
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Yes, I loved how Key played it safe in his speech by not saying anything that wasn't in English and at a twelve year old's vocabulary level. Inspiring effort.
Well, FFS Gio,Clark still has my mad respect but did I miss the part where she started channeling Disraeli or Gladstone and started lacing her speech with polysyllables and tags from classical literature? They both did what they needed to do, and even Barack Obama doesn't hit the rhetorical high-Cs every bloody time.
Russell - exactly how many down on last election was the Auckland Central turnout ? I heard Tizard on the radio claiming it was 12,000 down. I find that hard to believe, anyone know ?
Judith is (severely) exaggerating but not outright bullshitting -- here's the 2005 final and 2008 provisional Auckland Central results. The turnout was down by 2,291.
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In one of the comment threads at The Standard a reader had done the numbers on the turnout falls in South Auckland and they were significantly down, Auckland Central much less so. I doubt I'll have time to find the thread, sorry, but someone else might have their finger on it.
Also encouraging (in terms of the tolerance thing) was the gay on gay action in Te Atatu - Chris Carter for Labour was re-elected after losing his seat in 1996 after coming out, and Xavier Goldie stood against him for the Greens. Both openly gay, and no issue made about it.
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One thing with the turnout figures - at this stage I assume that the 2005 figures are final finals (ie after specials) whereas the 2008 figures exclude specials? So it might be a little early to be doing any analysis from those figures unless it's a big drop?
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Judith is (severely) exaggerating but not outright bullshitting -- here's the 2005 final and 2008 provisional Auckland Central results. The turnout was down by 2,291.
And having said that, I get more than a little pissed off when politicians blame turnout when they lose. We don't have compulsory voting like Australia, and hope we never will. Last year, for the first time in my life, I didn't vote in the local body elections -- and it basically didn't come down to being stupid or apathetic or complacent. I just couldn't vote for the incumbent Mayor and Council, and none of the alternatives had closed the deal (aided and abetted by media coverage that didn't even reach the dizzying heights of 'piss-poor'.)
Who was it who said "withdrawl in disgust is not the same as apathy"?
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I think it speaks volumes of the National party mindset that Key failed to include a single word of Maori in his acceptance speech and then went on to ignore Pita Sharples' role as co-leader of the Maori Party.
In my gut I just can't ignore the sense that we now have a government that doesn't view the NZ population as having any real diversity - a bit like the National caucus itself - and that earnest tokenism will be the order of the day.
The determined creation of wealth, as opposed to the genuine welfare of the populace or the environment, is the ideology we now seem yoked to.
Luckily I'm child-free and staying that way or I'd care a lot more.
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Re "Bribed with own money".
WTF is he on about, if not tax cuts?
Perhaps more disconcertingly, what exactly is the "lots of pain for lots of people" he's promising?
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One thing with the turnout figures - at this stage I assume that the 2005 figures are final finals (ie after specials) whereas the 2008 figures exclude specials?
On the Elections website, the specials are there on the electorate pages but separated out. I don't know if your comment was directed at me, but I did factor that into my calculations, and think either way Judith was exaggerating to excess, got bad information, or just flubbed her line, that turnout was down in Auckland Central by 12,000!
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I'd rather be trapped in a lift with Jason Gunn
I've been in an elevator with Jason Gunn. It was a non event.
I spent the whole time perving at the woman he was with. -
[Tizard] was exaggerating to excess
Either way, she failed to inspire 'em, ye?
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I think it speaks volumes of the National party mindset that Key failed to include a single word of Maori in his acceptance speech and then went on to ignore Pita Sharples' role as co-leader of the Maori Party.
Frankly, Michael, I'll pass on the plastic Tiki tokenism, welcome the new Maori members in the National caucus, and look for results. And Pita Sharples doesn't seem to have felt any great affront to his mana, so perhaps we can leave him to get offended on his own behalf?
In my gut I just can't ignore the sense that we now have a government that doesn't view the NZ population as having any real diversity - a bit like the National caucus itself -
*sigh* Michael: You might want to take some Eno, give your gut a rest and start using your eyes. I know Hekia Parata (for one example), and if you think she's just some Auntie Tom house nigger brown-wash I've got a slightly used Harbour Bridge at a knockdown price.
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Listen, it's mid-morning already and I can't see any sign of contractors laying fibre up my driveway.
What gives National?
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On the Elections website, the specials are there on the electorate pages but separated out. I don't know if your comment was directed at me, but I did factor that into my calculations, and think either way Judith was exaggerating to excess, got bad information, or just flubbed her line, that turnout was down in Auckland Central by 12,000!
Hence all the question marks in my comment, I wasn't sure and was seeking clarification. I agree Tizard is way off the mark.
I wonder what will happen if Labour do get another seat on specials which would mean Tizard is back in on the list. Will she take it or will she not? If she doesn't Damian O'Connor is next and the same question applies.
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You might want to take some Eno, give your gut a rest and start using your eyes.
I'd especially recommend starting with Here Come The Warm Jets, then if that doesn't help, maybe Taking Tiger Mountain.
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People should stop grumbling about a lack of diversity in National's caucus... their new coalition partners have introduced an exciting new minority into Parliament:
Roger Douglas, our first MP who is an Undead New Zealander (known in less polite circles as a zombie).
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I'd rather be trapped in a lift with Jason Gunn
I've been in an elevator with Jason Gunn. It was a non event.
I spent the whole time perving at the woman he was with.Same here, except he was alone & I wished it was Hayley Holt instead.
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