Posts by Katharine Moody
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Hard News: Five further thoughts, in reply to Marc C,
Thanks. A very fair summary and your conclusions are spot on.
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Hard News: The sole party of government, in reply to Kumara Republic,
Or as Fareed Zakaria calls it, illiberal democracy like in Singapore and even Russia. And it seems the same is happening in the West, especially in the English-speaking world.
Correct.
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Hard News: The sole party of government, in reply to mark taslov,
I don’t think we’re heading into tyranny
And of course the intent of a constitution under a liberal democracy was to protect individual rights by placing constraints on the exercise of the 'will of the majority' by our representatives. The tyranny of the majority, in other words, is what Western democracies have been seeking to moderate since their inception.
The problem for democracy these days is that collectives (citizenry) need protection from the will of the minority. So, I'd say many Western democracies are heading toward tyranny (by a minority) - a feudal sort of state.
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Hard News: The sole party of government, in reply to Kumara Republic,
Reform of the RMA starts in Epsom.
Yes!!!!!
Try out ACTs proposal - no RMA - no RULES - an Epsom planning free, free market.
I'd LOVE it.
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Hard News: The sole party of government, in reply to BenWilson,
They didn’t search for their souls because that would be futile. Not because they’ve got no souls (undecided on that), but because even if they do, the search is futile. It’s not their souls they want to find, it’s the levers of power.
How true!!!!!
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Hard News: Five further thoughts, in reply to Not The Messiah,
Internet/ mana probably lost because of dotcom but you do need big money to get ahead/ started/ competitive
Well, point is they wouldn't have existed were it not for Dotcom. He didn't lose it for them. Being an ex-pat myself, Kiwis generally aren't that welcoming of foreigners. But heck, he's made more millions in fewer years than the PM ever has. And in an area that the PM hasn't got a single, solitary clue about. Dotcom's not an "old boy", you see - he doesn't play golf - he plays internet games. Aside from all his business achievements, he even managed to make himself No 1. in the world in Call of Duty (not sure of what version). But, here he is PARTICIPATING here in little old NZ with our youth;
http://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/games/9230565/Gamer-who-conquered-Call-of-Dotcom
As I've said elsewhere on here and I'll say it again - Kim Dotcom is a modern genius in the biggest growth area on the planet at the moment - the internet. And look what our Government has done to him. It is shameful. My grandchildren would benefit immensely if this entrepreneur manages to stay here and become a leading contributor to our society in the future.
Wake up NZ.
Okay, I won't say it again.
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Hard News: Five further thoughts, in reply to tussock,
I don’t think talking up the looming oil crash is a vote winner.
It's not a looming oil crash - it's a looming credit crash/crunch/squeeze/strangle whatever you want to call it.
We have borrowed too much. The interest costs we are paying are crippling.
Demand and prices for our bulk export product (WMP) is in rapid decline.
The tax take will decline next year - the cost of government will increase.
Our lenders will charge a higher risk premium.
Our interest rate outgoings will increase again.
We are at the mercy of our lenders.
They will repossess us, unless we come up with a Plan B.
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Hard News: Five further thoughts, in reply to Dylan Reeve,
Not entirely sure this is the thread for it…. But I have this broad theory about left-wing vs. right-wing political theory…
I'm of the opinion that the old left vs right just isn't there any longer. National and Labour are much a muchness. National swallowed the dead rats and have borrowed us into oblivion.
What we have now are two main parties that represent the ideology of globalization. There are competing political ideologies emerging but they are not left of centre-left or right of centre-right. If you are so inclined, here is the way academia is looking at it these days;
http://mams.rmit.edu.au/es4cefpg6ifj1.pdf
Worth reading if only to understand/recognise the six core claims of globalism and then read the last few paragraphs where the author explains what a new political landscape might look like.
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Hard News: Five further thoughts, in reply to tussock,
Simple lies repeated often beat complex reality every single time.
Indeed, very true. But take Greens climate change policy - a carbon tax. Well, that's simple enough. But then they had to appease the masses with some kind of offset by way of a tax cut, wasn't it? Offsets in environmental management (effectively tradeoffs) don't really solve fundamental issues. I felt the same about they way they approached extractive industries - they were gong to use the money from increased royalty receipts to pay for something else. Another tradeoff.
The thing about true environmentalism - it accepts that the Limits to Growth thesis is real. The Greens seemed to be trying to say we could continue to 'grow' our economy AND they would also pay down debt faster. I'd have rather seen a fully costed plan for an economy in decline. Not one party (aside from NZF perhaps) seemed to want to admit we're headed for very hard times. The whole world is.
How does NZ maintain its sovereignty going forward is the real question.
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Hard News: Five further thoughts, in reply to Jack Harrison,
It’s a stuffed isthmus.
Couldn't agree more. I blame planners. I'm a planner but don't practice it, aside from voluntary/advocacy work. And I love that aspect of the work.