Hard News by Russell Brown

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Hard News: Let's be hearing it

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  • BenWilson,

    How much more is there to really say about this issue? Until we get to read the book, everything is speculation. And we will get to read the book. I may even break my rule of never purchasing another printed word, Brash has piqued my curiousity that much.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 10657 posts Report Reply

  • Che Tibby,

    tom, whalerider? i didn't allude to anything of the sort!

    however, a forbidden love like 'jungle fever' can lead a man to do strange, strange, things. wouldn't you agree?

    a woman crushed beneath the weight of that great mass of fever could, conceivably, seek a weigh out.

    the back of an envelope • Since Nov 2006 • 2042 posts Report Reply

  • andrew llewellyn,

    Er... come on guys, private conversation there - who is the Whalerider? (I have my suspicions).

    Since Nov 2006 • 2075 posts Report Reply

  • Idiot Savant,

    (Clatter of dice; Idiot fails SAN check)

    H P Lovecraft said that that "The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the human mind to correlate all its contents". Reading the innuendo above, I think he was right.

    Palmerston North • Since Nov 2006 • 1717 posts Report Reply

  • Idiot Savant,

    Andrew:

    Er... come on guys, private conversation there - who is the Whalerider? (I have my suspicions).

    Please Cthulhu no. I don't know, and I don't want to know. That's Wishart territory.

    Palmerston North • Since Nov 2006 • 1717 posts Report Reply

  • Danyl Mclauchlan,

    The 'Whalerider' is a creepy Labour party rumour/fantasy about a political journalist and a National politician. It's not true.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 927 posts Report Reply

  • Verpal Singh,

    The blatantly biased way media handled the Labour Party election spending (how many people on the street know that every Party with the exception of Progressives, was guilty of what Labour was accused of?), especially commentators like Paul Henry, Mathew Hooton and Lisa Owen amongst others (Guyon Espiner did try to at least appear objective in his comments), had made me lose faith in media being the fourth estate. Nicky Hager saga will hopefully make an honest journalist out of these personages who didn't think it amiss to obfuscate issues because they "dislike Helen Clark" (or "a woman in power" as Paul Henry put it in yesterday's Breakfast show, with finding it difficult to hold back his derisive laughter at Helen Clark wearing the Vietnamese dress). It was fun watching Mathew Hooton on today's Breakfast being given the chance to discredit Hager. But it would have been more fun if Paul Henry had been asked to interview both Hager and Hooton (and together!).
    Russell Brown & David Slack, why are we seeing less of you on Breakfast these days ?

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 10 posts Report Reply

  • Russell Brown,

    "Why would Bill English receive 50,000 private emails between Don Brash and others?"

    Where'd you get that number from? Did obtaining it . . . hurt?

    It may be a frequently used conduit, so probably not.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 22850 posts Report Reply

  • Che Tibby,

    damn, thought i'd started a rumour that might accidentally have had substance...

    the back of an envelope • Since Nov 2006 • 2042 posts Report Reply

  • andrew llewellyn,

    "The 'Whalerider' is a creepy Labour party rumour/fantasy about a political journalist and a National politician"

    Ewwwww!

    "It may be a frequently used conduit"

    and ewwwwww! (I'm prepared (hoping) to believe I misunderstood that one.)

    Since Nov 2006 • 2075 posts Report Reply

  • hamishm,

    One thing about this affair does my head in.
    Last night on Campbell live Barry Gustafson gave examples of meetings that Labour and National had had with different groups that they wouldn't want people to know about. Some of these e-mails apparently fall into this category, stuff politicians don't want us to know.
    But we all do "know" or suspect that what we see is the 1/8th of the mass that is above the water.
    It's as though we are meant to have the knowlege but not act on it, to have a separate part of the brain that turns off at decision time. "I think that they are a bunch of liars, but I'll trust them again".
    So that we can then watch the baby kissing and listen to speeches about family values and one law for all while knowing that it is a sham.
    Does my head in.

    Since Nov 2006 • 357 posts Report Reply

  • David Slack,

    Russell Brown & David Slack, why are we seeing less of you on Breakfast these days ?

    Don't know what Russell's current schedule is, but on the Friday week in review, we're now a three-week roster instead of fortnightly: Joe Bennett and Caroline Daley, Wallace Chapman and Penny Ashton, and Michele A'Court and me. But just to confuse things, I'll be on this Friday and the following one as well.

    I'd wave, but that's probably not the way the cool people do it.

    Devonport • Since Nov 2006 • 599 posts Report Reply

  • Russell Brown,

    Don't know what Russell's current schedule is, but on the Friday week in review, we're now a three-week roster instead of fortnightly:

    I always forget to tell my Mum ...

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 22850 posts Report Reply

  • Idiot Savant,

    Hamish: we all know that politicians are liars. Very few of them however pretend that it is a virtue - at least, not where we can see.

    It is really a question of how much dishonesty we are willing to stomach. And unfortunately we won't know how dishonest "honest Don" has been with us until we get to read the book and see those emails.

    Palmerston North • Since Nov 2006 • 1717 posts Report Reply

  • andrew llewellyn,

    "I'd wave, but that's probably not the way the cool people do it."

    make it look involuntary & everyone will forgive you. :)

    Since Nov 2006 • 2075 posts Report Reply

  • hamishm,

    It is really a question of how much dishonesty we are willing to stomach

    Yeah, I guess that's it, the Matrix school of politics.

    Since Nov 2006 • 357 posts Report Reply

  • Paul Williams,

    NZ politics may soon rival Australian, or at least NSW, politics for its tawdry little secrets. NSW has had two high profile politicians exit amid scandalous allegations, and I suspect Brash will go soon enough.

    His legacy will not be the job he did restoring the National Party to a credible presence in parliament, it will be suggestions that he lied about ANZUS, lied about the Exclusive Brethern and philandered his way through the lobbies meanwhile chiding Helen for not embracing some Elizabethan notion of marriage.

    I'll not miss him.

    Sydney • Since Nov 2006 • 2273 posts Report Reply

  • Russell Brown,

    Latest:

    Author Nicky Hager says the lawyer for National leader Don Brash has told him that he will not be required to hand over the 3000 copies of his book about the Brash-led National Party to the High Court ... "Because things are moving quickly they have decided that they are not going to serve an injunction on me, which means that we won’t have to hand across all the books to the High Court today,” Mr Hager said. “And it feels to me that they are on the way to lifting the injunction, but obviously they haven’t done that yet.”

    Link

    Dr Brash says he has nothing to fear from the book and would like to see it published, though he says the privacy of people who sent him e-mails must be protected. Radio New Zealand's political staff say the discussion centres on maintaining a legal ban on the release of any of Dr Brash's personal e-mails from other sources.

    Link

    Political commentator Richard Griffin says he cannot see Don Brash surviving as leader of the National Party, once Nicky Hager's book is published ... Mr Griffin says when the book comes out, Dr Brash is unlikely to be able to continue as leader, mostly because National Party people themselves will seek their vengeance for the way he has handled the matter.

    http://home.nzcity.co.nz/news/default.asp?id=67899

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 22850 posts Report Reply

  • Jake Pollock,

    "chiding Helen for not embracing some Elizabethan notion of marriage."

    A pity, because Elizabethan marriage always seemed like fun.

    Raumati South • Since Nov 2006 • 489 posts Report Reply

  • Kyle Matthews,

    "I'd wave, but that's probably not the way the cool people do it."

    make it look involuntary & everyone will forgive you. :)

    The only way I can see that turning out is everyone thinking he's having a fit on national TV.

    Since Nov 2006 • 6243 posts Report Reply

  • andrew llewellyn,

    The only way I can see that turning out is everyone thinking he's having a fit on national TV.

    Would I suggest a thing like that to David? :)

    Since Nov 2006 • 2075 posts Report Reply

  • Russell Brown,

    The only way I can see that turning out is everyone thinking he's having a fit on national TV.

    Thanks. You've saved me the trouble of making a joke about stem cell research that I would probably have regretted ...

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 22850 posts Report Reply

  • john shears,

    So people really do watch Breakfast TV Wow!

    North Shore City • Since Nov 2006 • 21 posts Report Reply

  • Craig Ranapia,

    Verpal Singh wrote:
    The blatantly biased way media handled the Labour Party election spending (how many people on the street know that every Party with the exception of Progressives, was guilty of what Labour was accused of?)

    Anyone who could read? Sorry for the snark, but most people I know of all political persuasions hit the point of information (and spin) overload a while back.

    North Shore, Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 12370 posts Report Reply

  • Craig Ranapia,

    And with all due respect, Russell, Richard Griffin is such an expert on "National Party people" because... he was Jim Bolger's chief press secretary ten years ago? Richard gives excellent sound bite, and has some insight into politcs, but perhaps he should focus on his day job as TVNZ's 'government relations manager' - and given the dog's breakfast that's been on his watch, how the hell has he kept off the dole line?

    North Shore, Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 12370 posts Report Reply

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