Posts by Rich of Observationz
-
Hard News: Time to get a grip, in reply to Rex Widerstrom,
So basically, a smaller party (that has one or no electorates) would be solely represented by the leader, who would cast a block vote at their discretion.
(Call me cynical, but you were in NZ First some time ago, right? I can see how that would have been attractive...)
I don't think that would help with cynicism about parties from the electorate, really.
-
Hard News: Time to get a grip, in reply to Rex Widerstrom,
One important right that we don't have is the right to a fair and democratic legislative process. Sure, we have "the right to vote in genuine periodic elections of members of the House of Representatives, which elections shall be by equal suffrage and by secret ballot" but there's nothing to stop the HoR being permanently sidelined in whole or part.
(The USA has this, as alluded to above. Even if it wanted to, Congress is restricted by the constitution from delegating legislation).
-
On Hide's Regulatory Reform Bill, I was looking for a platform to express my views on the stupidity of this, so forgive me a further post this morning.
This seems to be an attempt to create "basic law". These laws (such as the US constitution or the ECHR) express fundamental principles which are broadly agreed and cannot be overridden by legislation. The NZ BORA is a (weak) attempt at this.
Basic law works well when it expresses a general consensus and is entrenched beyond the short term whims of public and legislators. The RRB is neither - if passed, it will have scraped through parliament on a bare majority of votes. It could be fittingly repealed under urgency in the first week's business of the next left-wing government (it could possibly be nullified by a "notwithstanding clause" in a single piece of legislation - I'm not qualified to take a view on whether this would actually work).
Ironically, as the government promotes this legislation, it simultaneously passes the Canterbury earthquake laws that sideline parliament in favour of rule by decree. How these diametrically opposite measures interact is questionable. (The Canterbury laws would be illegal under the US constitution, which specifically proscribes such measures).
I'm actually in favour of having a strong, enforcable framework of basic law. But it should be entrenched by popular mandate and reflect real human rights and principles, not the "right to make a fast buck".
-
Despite what the Fat White Dicks say, Judith Tizard didn't lose Auckland Central because she was a bad MP. I was a constituent of hers in 04-07, and voting at Herne Bay polling station, I was amazed that Labour got any votes at all in the area, it was just that much of a wealthy peoples suburb. Pretty much all of central Auckland has become that way now (John Banks selling off social housing helped), and it's hard to sustain an electorate on rich white liberals voting against their class interest.
Would Judith have had more of a mandate if she'd been a list-only candidate (there are very few of these - Don Brash was one I can think of)? I can't see why. A winning list candidate has got 40,000+ votes from the whole country. A winning electroral candidate typically gets 10-15000 votes, all clumped in one place. Why are voters that live near each other more worthy than those scattered around the nation?
-
[documentaries featuring] Hitler and horny wildlife
Triumph of the Wildebeest?
-
When overseas (not UK), it's New Zealand.
Here, unless the person actually knows there way around the UK, it's "50k from London" unless I really want to explain exactly where my town is.
For Aucklanders who once stopped for a pie in Dunedin, but want to be associated with a rugged Southern rugby culture, it's Otago.
-
So Craig, the NZ economy obeys different, special rules to other nations?
I’d point out what I posted days ago – our government debt is the 7th lowest in the OECD. It’s lower than the US or UK – so, please explain how, if they don’t have a problem, why we do?
-
Just apropos of this, a good post by Johann Hari on why the UK (and by extension NZ) doesn’t really have a debt problem.
And references Paul Krugman who talks about 'The Confidence Fairy'.
-
Hard News: Limping Onwards, in reply to nzlemming,
Exactly - the guy was stealing from people that had supplied him and lent him money on a basis that they'd get paid. That's paid in dollars, not possibilities.
New Zealand companies can and do sell weapons and defence equipment - Pacific Aerospace, for instance. They just need to do the paperwork and get export licenses. Rogers evidently thought that didn't apply to him.
-
Hard News: Limping Onwards, in reply to Sofie Bribiesca,
And they'll have Henry VIII powers for five years. Apparently it's international best practice - not in many countries with written constitutions - it would be impossible for a US government to legislate rule by decree, ever.