True but we need to take into account Joyce, English and others really in charge (including outside govt).

if only we had a better track record of selling things for something even approaching their future value. Telecon, anyone?

Until the bottom hits private business (especially banks) will soak the government for every cent it is willing to provide.

Problems are created by…

So you work for treasury making forecasts, No?…

I'd agree its corruption and managerial crap, I don't think its ideological – at least it…

Yes, within the context of the economic environment peculiar to each country. If there is a tax on land, you have no choice but to pay it. If discretionary spending is a driver of inflation a land…

This is odd – how and why would a land tax translate to countering increased liquidity, a land tax is not a tool to…

That's a widespread feeling. I want to make it clear I actually mostly like your commentary, and agree with a lot of it. But I think you equate all money printing ideas with "quantitative easing".…

I’m suggesting a constructive countermeasure to balance the possible inflationary pressure caused by an increase in the money supply. A land tax is desirable anyway…

The US is looking at QEIII, and will then look to QEIV, Then QEV etc etc – In my view they should have bitten the bullet when the shit hit the fan and bailed out…

I am interested into how you see it as beneficlal that Land Tax will suck surplus cash out of the…

I accept that as rhetorical, and understand that your point is to keep the numbers of disadvantaged to a minimum. I didn't get that from your earlier post.

You're only considering conventional quantitative easing. If you simply 'print' electronic money rather than monetize bank assets then you bypass the banks. The government then uses that money to build houses which…

By some people, you mean tens of thousands of families. Possibly hundreds of thousands, if any banks actually collapse, which they easily could.

Scenario B – liquidity is injected at…

OK, so how is my losing the house that I already partially own, and owing the bank the difference going to…

That would be my solution – nationalise the unpayable mortgages, let people stay in their houses and convert them to tenancies. A house becomes a…

As I see it in the event of a property crash there is going to be some suffering:

Scenario A – property prices…

I like the idea of people learning from mistakes, but don’t wish other people harm.

Surely, there are too many people suffering already.

He could be talking about me as well, but I think he's just talking about some straw men greedy rich and rich bankers. Easier that way, then he doesn't need to consider actual people.

Dude, you're talking about me, who purchased a house in a low income area at a time when it simply made more economic…

And the definition of greedy rich is anyone who has bought property?

I'm a pragmatist, not a neo-liberal.

Rich people who purchased at inflated prices and the rich bankers who loaned them the money should suffer losses, because morally we shouldn't reward the greedy rich. Because the tools used to prevent the rich from suffering losses will cause greater suffering amoung poor people who…

If we accept that NZ needs some *some* degree of foreign investment/capital (given we are small, a long way from most places, and have a small population base yet we still…

No shit, Sherlock.

Why should people suffer?

An abundance of liquitiy in the American housing market caused the global recession...

too soon?

Perhaps they have been poorly directed. There is certainly an unevenness to pressures of supply and demand within our economy which aren’t being mitigated by…

And the MOM will only further entrench it. As I've previously mentioned, the NZX is too heavily dominated by ex-state monopolies, whereas other sharemarkets have a much…

And it only seems to be ‘xenophobia’ if big money is supposedly at stake. The same people who wield that word like a big stick wouldn’t hesitate to…

Without…

The concept was still…

Not a red herring Chris you have missed my point…

Yes I agree. I quite like Harvard Law Professor Lawrence Lessig’s voucher system for funding of political parties whereby institutional funding is prohibited and each voter is granted a voucher of, say $50 which s/he donates…

HOWEVER
back here in ANZ
buying a property(landed means something ENTIRELY DIFFERENT here)
is a vastly different matter from buying a property in China – and comes with a whole set of prohibitions of use and committments towards community than a possible…

Chinese people can't buy Chinese land. All land is either state-owned or collectively-owned. Foreigner investors in China can buy the same land use rights that Chinese people can buy, albeit with certain restrictions around national…

Some Swiss people that I know see this as enriching lawyers in Switzerland and…

As a total aside, I think it should be Dr (Sir) Michael. The title of Dr, which is conferred by an open and objective process is to me far more prestigious than an imperial honour conferred through a political quota.

Bloody optimists.

We can have a property crash, I think…

I disagree. Rather than enter into any multilateral trade agreements I’d rather see New Zealand do what the Swiss do, which is to negotiate a series of bilateral trade agreements tailored…

Sir Michael Fay approved this message?

We would have signed up to a treaty allowing our government to be sued by multi-national companies in the 90s, and have traded away our democracy and sovereignty for little…

Our dairy industry is in a precarious position as the main industry that brings money into the country. Our government should think extra-carefully about encouraging foreign investors to…

As I understand it, a dairy farm currently makes maybe $400/hectare in operating profits off a land price of $30,000 a hectare. That isn't enough to pay any sort of mortgage – basically they're farming…

It means we had to show the Chinese we are willing to do business with them in spite of our domestic political environment. In doing so New Zealand has lived up to its commitment to free trade.

Fact is, we need…

Wow. Not sure what the basis of that passive aggression is.
We already signed a free trade agreement so our relationship is just fine.

I do find it amusing that you think "trust" is even relevant issue when discussing trade negotiations. Also…

Can you expand on what that really means Scott.

Maybe so, but the Crafar Farms sale to a large international company is more to do with developing a trading relationship based…