Posts by Kyle Matthews
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Kyle: Not at all. As I've said ad nauseum, people are perfectly free not to vote, not to participate in the democratic process and know nothing (and care even less) about what local government does. But I think it's fair comment to say that bitching about your rates bill is somewhat futile when you can't be arsed getting involved in the process.
People aren't bitching about their rates bill.
There's an argument for "if you don't vote don't complain about what the people who get elected do". That's not what is happening however. Your argument seems to boil down to "if you don't vote, don't complain when the government passes laws to remove parts of local government from your control". I'm not sure under which principle of democracy that comes under, since it's not even required that we vote in NZ.
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Well, I'll follow Gio's excellent example and spare everyone a not so wee rant about the "consultation" rounds I've attended that could have been held by pushing two tables together in a cafe; the miserable turnout rates in a nation where, by international standards, we make it absurdly easy to enrol and vote; and the institutionalised culture of secrecy and obfuscation in local government. I could also say a word or two about the only daily newspaper between Hamilton and Whangarei deciding local government isn't as newsworthy as Alison Mau's snatch and disaster-porn.
Perhaps "they" decided people don't give a fuck anyway. I sincerely hope, after all the sound and fury, people are going to be getting off their arses and speaking up where it really counts.
Wait, people not engaging in the political process is a reason for crappy central government laws? Parliament is a "well you didn't use it so we're taking it away" body now?
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Paul Adams has asked me to send you the enclosed £100 to help pay for your "Awayday". I do hope you will enjoy yourselves.
100 pounds gets you influence over a prominent MP? Have we become that cheap?
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The connections here are:
- Conservative churches
- The prospective candidates Tuigamala and Jones (the latter is also on Family First's oversight board)
- Foreign minister Murray McCully, whose approach to Pacific aid and development is not shared by most people in the sector.I'm seeing Grant Robertson all over this in the near future. Formerly worked at MFAT on aid to the Pacific.
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Not just that, his opener example as a young couple, both on $50k.
He must have meant "average white couple, tertiary educated, graduated several years ago, working their way up some corporate ladder, no children or other dependents." Must be a gay couple, given that a woman would earn significantly less than the man on average.
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The fact they didn't do that suggests that delivering that enormous windfall was a core goal. This was about delivering to their donors.
I actually don't think the politics are that stupid. I remember some piece of evidence about tax cuts to uber-rich people. Despite the fact that 99.9% of people would never get near such an income level, they supported them because they aspired to be that rich.
(This piece of evidence may have actually been on the West Wing, sometimes I cross over).
I don't actually think many people in the National Party would be giving out tax cuts simply to reward themselves and their donors, though there may be some of that. I suspect that most of them, like many NZers, believe that lower taxes are good for the economy and lead to businesses coming here and educated people staying and all the stuff that Key and English fronted up and said. Often wrong, but not normally corrupt.
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Speaking of this sort of thing... anyone know when Fringe is set to return to NZ broadcast TV?
I couldn't stick with Fringe. "Oh, here's another fantastic bit of silly science that I discovered in my lab before I was locked away for being mad which I forgot to mention last week!"
The obvious solution of "hey mate, what other shit did you cook up in your lab years ago? Just so we know what's coming eh!" didn't seem to occur to anyone.
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All said, I still expect to fell lost at the end of all and would be disappoint if I'm not.
I hope the last two season DVDs come with extensive commentaries. I'm faithful, but struggling to make sense of it. Certainly gone downhill as well.
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I thought that part of National's cunning plan was to equalise the top personal rate and the company rate, it has been reduced from 8% to 5%, but that is still quite a gap.
That's what stood out for me. Yeah sure National is going to cut taxes, this is the budget that they're going to do it.
But the rationale that was thrown around beforehand about incentives to avoid taxes.... that's still there. The arguments for the change don't actually relate to the change made.
Those on $150,000 are, rarely, working by the hour, sure some may charge billable hours but those hours are so ridiculously expensive they cant work the 9 to 5 shift without embarrassment, so they have long working lunches and expense accounts to ease the pain. Poor dears.
Yes. Eat the rich, blah blah, nasty rich people, stereotype, generalisation. Feel free to do better next time.
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But bear in mind that with the increase in gst on fodder, you may not be able to feed it. So unless you're buying it in order to make tasty pony stew in the stockpot, then it's not a good idea.
Nono. Hold onto the pony, cover your pony mortgage and expenses entirely from renting it out, and then sell it off with a big capital gain.