ANZG: The Trans-Tasman Thread

[Forster Keys]

Not get arrested, she said parentally.

EDIT: Oh, damn, forgot This Is Not a Chat Thread. Bad Ard. Quick, for desperate wrench back on topic: do NZ schools have muck-up days, or do you stick to formal goodbye ceremonies?

Not that I've noticed. However, I believe it is traditional to do something along the lines of gladwrapping a car.

We do that to people I suppose. Harder when they're sober.

[Imperial isa]

Hey guys, what should I do for my muck up day?

my high school ban muck up when i was there,don't know if the ban got left or not

[Blouman Empire]

Fine, the ALP steered Australia through the GFC. And I would like to note that Wayne Swan was the Treasurer throughout. Granted, the fact that the Howard Government - unlike conservatives worldwide - didn't dismantle our prudential regulations in the leadup and didn't run up huge debts during the good times helped a lot, and I give Howard and Costello grudging credit for that part of it. However, the stimulus - Labor's work - was both timely and about the right size, no matter how much individual blunders (i.e., pink batts) are trumpted in the media, and their subsequent fiscal policy has been - as you note later - a touch on the conservative side of what's best.

Grudging? Why not give credit where credit is due?

(B) Did you even read the article?

I did, I don't see why I should take the word of one person over that of another, when that person has an axe to grind.

(C) The issue is not that he's lying - as you infer, all politicans do - it's that he's lying enough to cause even the right-leaning commercial media (i.e., his natural backers) to sit up & pay attention. Things like blatantly contradicting his own statements mere hours after he gives them, attacking the Government on the basis of documents he later admits to not reading, etc. etc.

We need an effective Opposition for good governance, and we need an ethical Opposition to draw attention to corruption in the Government. Tony Abbot is neither effective nor honest nor ethical (even to the relatively low standards to which we hold most politicians), but it appears he'll become the PM in due course anyway, largely because the media are still mostly boosting him and people are sick of Labor.

In other words we will have another labor if he gets in.

So you know he said something blatantly contradicted by basic economic theory, but cannot point to any specific examples. That's......um, not terribly helpful.

No it's not I don't keep copies of quotes or articles for years on end on the off chance I need to post it on NSG, nor do I usually need it in my life. If I knew I needed it more often I would, but I'm not a very organised person anyway.

OFC the budget doesn't need to be brought into balance just yet - I'd say the right time on current patterns is in about 5 years, when the private sector has fully picked up the slack it let go in 2007/08 (thus, the lowering of Governmental demand for goods and services won't create a recession). But remind me, who's pushing the whole "DEFICITS R BAD!!!" line?

The Coalition. The Coalition has spend two full decades - since the start of the Keating Government - instilling into the public consciousness the idea that deficits are always bad, that deficits are always a sign of fiscal mismanagement, that Government should run its budgets like an ordinary suburban family, etc. etc.

They have done this relentlessly, they have bashed Labor at every opportunity for the debt run up during the Keating years (nvm that it was necessary on account of worldwide recession), and they have succeeded in implanting the narrative: if you ask 100 Australians on the street whether they think that deficits are always bad under any circumstances, at least 70 of them will reply "yes".

You can blame Gillard & Swan for being bullied into going along with the narrative if you want, but I at least remember who created the narrative in the first place and pushed it at every opportunity (including after losing Government in 2007). And it wasn't Labor.

Doesn't matter who said it, I don't agree with it and that is why I am against it. If they followed their mantra which both Swan, Gillard, Wong et. al. have parroted for years, that they are going to do what is best for the country and not best for the polls they wouldn't be doing this shit. It appears that they will only say that when it convenient at the time and not as their philosophy. Those sort of slogans irritate me because it is just bullshit that is said to boost the polls.

*Snip fiscal policy rant*

I never said I agreed with it, in fact I have had a couple of debates with Leon over it you should ask him those questions. I am saying there are times when I agree with his sentitments

[Blouman Empire]

Hey guys, what should I do for my muck up day?

Our Yr12 muckup day was rather tame compared to stories I have heard. A few of us camped on the oval overnight, then during the day we got the school BBQs out and cooked up breakfast those who had cars drove them onto the oval and in front of the grandstand they arranged the cars into a 12. They took the obligatory Yr12 photo on the office steps (they were high enough to take the 70 students) and that was about it. One guy did go for a run in a g-string through the school during recess, we were hoping to take his clothes but his girlfriend stayed in the room and kept it locked so we couldn't get it.

Our final year of primary school we toilet papered our classroom and a few others, everything inside was covered the desks, the windows, the fan, we indivudally wrapped the whiteboard earsers and a few other items, we also did our teacher's car.

Apart from that I would say do something that is going to be remembered by everyone at the school so when they come to Yr12 they go remeber that Forster bloke? I want to do something like that. You should see if you can get a hold of some lambs and release them into the school, or if it is a warm day get there early set up a large inflatable pool and let everyone else know so they can all come in their swimmers and have a pool party in the piazza, or quadrangle or whatever you guys have.

[Forster Keys]

Hey guys, what should I do for my muck up day?

Our Yr12 muckup day was rather tame compared to stories I have heard. A few of us camped on the oval overnight, then during the day we got the school BBQs out and cooked up breakfast those who had cars drove them onto the oval and in front of the grandstand they arranged the cars into a 12. They took the obligatory Yr12 photo on the office steps (they were high enough to take the 70 students) and that was about it. One guy did go for a run in a g-string through the school during recess, we were hoping to take his clothes but his girlfriend stayed in the room and kept it locked so we couldn't get it.

Our final year of primary school we toilet papered our classroom and a few others, everything inside was covered the desks, the windows, the fan, we indivudally wrapped the whiteboard earsers and a few other items, we also did our teacher's car.

Apart from that I would say do something that is going to be remembered by everyone at the school so when they come to Yr12 they go remeber that Forster bloke? I want to do something like that. You should see if you can get a hold of some lambs and release them into the school, or if it is a warm day get there early set up a large inflatable pool and let everyone else know so they can all come in their swimmers and have a pool party in the piazza, or quadrangle or whatever you guys have.

Haha thanks. We've got to be careful though. Top brass has threatened to suspend us if we do anything too horrible. And that means we can't actually come to the exams. :/ Today some of us glawrapped, wrote on, and polystyrened cars, put flour on all the fans, wrote all over the school in chalk and marker. The deputy seemed quite pissed. I'm sure someone is planning something big, but I'm still thinking .

[Blouman Empire]

Our Yr12 muckup day was rather tame compared to stories I have heard. A few of us camped on the oval overnight, then during the day we got the school BBQs out and cooked up breakfast those who had cars drove them onto the oval and in front of the grandstand they arranged the cars into a 12. They took the obligatory Yr12 photo on the office steps (they were high enough to take the 70 students) and that was about it. One guy did go for a run in a g-string through the school during recess, we were hoping to take his clothes but his girlfriend stayed in the room and kept it locked so we couldn't get it.

Our final year of primary school we toilet papered our classroom and a few others, everything inside was covered the desks, the windows, the fan, we indivudally wrapped the whiteboard earsers and a few other items, we also did our teacher's car.

Apart from that I would say do something that is going to be remembered by everyone at the school so when they come to Yr12 they go remeber that Forster bloke? I want to do something like that. You should see if you can get a hold of some lambs and release them into the school, or if it is a warm day get there early set up a large inflatable pool and let everyone else know so they can all come in their swimmers and have a pool party in the piazza, or quadrangle or whatever you guys have.

Haha thanks. We've got to be careful though. Top brass has threatened to suspend us if we do anything too horrible. And that means we can't actually come to the exams. :/ Today some of us glawrapped, wrote on, and polystyrened cars, put flour on all the fans, wrote all over the school in chalk and marker. The deputy seemed quite pissed. I'm sure someone is planning something big, but I'm still thinking .

Hahaha nice work. Do what I did in year 10 when you know it is going to be hot on a Monday, get some fish place it in the air conditioning ducts on a Friday let it rot over the weekend, come Monday when they turn the air-con on the smell goes throughout the classrooms

[Costa Alegria]

Thought I'd bump this by stating I've found a site full of "Kiwi slang" and realised I haven't heard half the stuff. And also realised the other half I use on a daily basis.

It must be confusing for foreigners. English is hard enough without our little idioms.

[New Rogernomics]

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/artic ... d=10835245

Prime Minister John Key. Photo / Paul Taylor

On Planet Key, no one cleans toilets for the minimum wage. There are no toilets on Planet Key. In fact, no one works on Planet Key. If you do not like golf, there seems to be little else to do, however.

John Key has been accused of lacking vision. But his mind-boggling version of nirvana is looking more akin to The Stepford Wives. Even scarier, there has not been a word so far from him on how to pay for it.

Responsibility for the Prime Minister revealing his admittedly tongue-in-cheek idea of the perfect society is down to Greens co-leader Metiria Turei.

National has tormented Labour by dismissing their MPs as inhabitants of Planet Labour - a fiscal fool's paradise where the global crash apparently never happened. Turei has turned the tables by asking what happens on an equally mythical Planet Key.

During yesterday's ministers' question-time, Turei asked Key if his idea of nirvana was 270,000 children living in poverty while their mothers earned $13.50 an hour cleaning the toilets on his "plentiful" golf courses.[...]

[Blouman Empire]

There may be a thread on the utterances of Alan Jones, but I think this article says something about a number of people who continue to make political mileage on the incident

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political ... 26zkf.html

[Forster Keys]

Haha thanks. We've got to be careful though. Top brass has threatened to suspend us if we do anything too horrible. And that means we can't actually come to the exams. :/ Today some of us glawrapped, wrote on, and polystyrened cars, put flour on all the fans, wrote all over the school in chalk and marker. The deputy seemed quite pissed. I'm sure someone is planning something big, but I'm still thinking .

Hahaha nice work. Do what I did in year 10 when you know it is going to be hot on a Monday, get some fish place it in the air conditioning ducts on a Friday let it rot over the weekend, come Monday when they turn the air-con on the smell goes throughout the classrooms

Well I did ride around the school on a disability scooter one of the English teachers graciously lent me proclaiming that the revolution had arrived. Then I had to walk ten kilometres to go to the after party.

[Forster Keys]

Thought I'd bump this by stating I've found a site full of "Kiwi slang" and realised I haven't heard half the stuff. And also realised the other half I use on a daily basis.

It must be confusing for foreigners. English is hard enough without our little idioms.

With Aussie slang it's the opposite. All the phrases that aren't apparently used any more I use on a fairly regular basis, as do a lot of people I know.

[Forster Keys]

There may be a thread on the utterances of Alan Jones, but I think this article says something about a number of people who continue to make political mileage on the incident

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political ... 26zkf.html

My policy here is "don't feed the troll".

[Ardchoille]

My policy here is "don't feed the troll".

*smiles benignly at trollnaming of shockjock*

If we find out Alan Jones has got an NS account, though ... well, isn't it a coincidence that I've just had eye surgery and I can't read some things.

[Blouman Empire]

Hahaha nice work. Do what I did in year 10 when you know it is going to be hot on a Monday, get some fish place it in the air conditioning ducts on a Friday let it rot over the weekend, come Monday when they turn the air-con on the smell goes throughout the classrooms

Well I did ride around the school on a disability scooter one of the English teachers graciously lent me proclaiming that the revolution had arrived. Then I had to walk ten kilometres to go to the after party.

Haha nice work, good luck with your exams

[Blouman Empire]

There may be a thread on the utterances of Alan Jones, but I think this article says something about a number of people who continue to make political mileage on the incident

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political ... 26zkf.html

My policy here is "don't feed the troll".

Indeed, but it is amusing* that Roxon was quick to blame Abbot, not to mention a few other ALP MPs whom like to play the "It's all Abbot's fault" game.

*By amusing I mean I find it funny that they draw these conclusuions, but I am also sickened that they do this.

[New Rogernomics]

Thought I'd bump this by stating I've found a site full of "Kiwi slang" and realised I haven't heard half the stuff. And also realised the other half I use on a daily basis.

It must be confusing for foreigners. English is hard enough without our little idioms.

With Aussie slang it's the opposite. All the phrases that aren't apparently used any more I use on a fairly regular basis, as do a lot of people I know.

They come out of my mouth at random moments, usually in attempts at humour that go unnoticed.

[New Rogernomics]

Why are New Zealanders so passive?

The main personality deviation between LP and me, of the traits that we've inherited through our different countries of birth, is assertiveness.

My wife LP, an American, is assertive, with an innate knack of communicating straightforwardly what she wants, and then being vocal when something has not met these explicit directions.

I do not have this in me. I seem to have an internal desire at all times to not want to make a fuss, or cause a scene, or trouble anybody if I can help it.

This New Zealand national passiveness was cuttingly parodied in an early episode of Flight of the Conchords, where a racist fruit stand owner (deftly underplayed by a pre-breakout Aziz Ansari) won't serve Bret and Jemaine because of their international origin. "I don't want our customers complaining that our fruit tastes like New Zealanders," he tells them.

Bret and Jemaine repeat their order a few times pleasantly, before giving up. They stand motionless, scowling. "Thanks," Bret says as they retreat, playing meekly at not wanting to cause a scene, but also undercutting his retort with just a whiff of repressed aggression.

To me, this is type A New Zealand behaviour.[...]

http://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/blogs/voy ... so-passive

[Forsher]

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10839167

Twenty years, nearly 40% of the population. Today 30% (ish). Forty years, 50%, right?

Anyway, maybe with all these people we're expected to get we should start building more compact houses so that those of us with less compact ones can keep them that way.

[AiliailiA]

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10839167

In 2031, 38 percent of Kiwis will reside in Auckland, compared to 34 percent in 2011. It is projected Auckland would have almost 2 million of New Zealand's 5.2 million people.

I can see why Kiwis don't like nuclear weapons.

[Blouman Empire]

So the Speaker of the house sends sexist text messages to one of his staff and the government (whom have been seaking out against sexism since they were elected) endorse the speaker and allow him to retain his role. Does anyone else see the hypocrisy in this? I suppose it is politically convenient to keep him as Speaker which is why they are wiling to overlook his sexism and sexual abuse charges.

[Creative Vikings]

Was hating on John Key before it was cool...

[New Rogernomics]

Was hating on John Key before it was cool...

I never liked him, but most of his supporters are even worse. In other things the government seems to sack more people every week than any other employer in New Zealand and claims to be 'creating job's' what a joke, and it isn't even funny. NZ unemployment keeps rising and rising, and their solution is 'more austerity', 'leave everything to the market'. They call austerity 'returning to surplus'. Fortunately National will be out in two years (that is if I am still here); certainly I intend in election year to hold a sign protesting his austerity measures, that have left NZ debt ridden* and 200,000 children in poverty.

* Labour/Greens/NZ First vs National/Act/Maori Party: John Key plans to return to surplus by bankrupting the country? What is after quadrupling the national debt in two years?

[Jafas United]

In other things the government seems to sack more people every week than any other employer in New Zealand and claims to be 'creating job's' what a joke, and it isn't even funny. NZ unemployment keeps rising and rising,

The Household Labour Force Survey is crap. I'd say the real unemployment rate is slightly higher. Not to mention if all those Kiwis hadn't migrated to Australia, it'd be even higher.

That being said, I'm loving how the left is always quick to jump of Key whenever the economy is doing shit. Businesses for the most part, create jobs. It's up to business to grow and employ people. Key doesn't run people's businesses. If business owners cannot employ people, how is that Key's responsibility? We can't all be civil servants, economies don't function like that. That's why business needs to be allowed to do business, because that is how jobs get created.

Besides, most of these job losses are due to a high dollar, and not because of government policies.

and their solution is 'more austerity', 'leave everything to the market'. They call austerity 'returning to surplus'. Fortunately National will be out in two years (that is if I am still here); certainly I intend in election year to hold a sign protesting his austerity measures, that have left NZ debt ridden* and 200,000 children in poverty.

Let's not forget that it the Labour party who put New Zealand into recession before the GFC.

The government has lowered business tax rates to help create an environment for business. NZ is managing the economic shitstorm better than many other countries. We're even undertaking infrastructure projects (i.e. RoNS)

Our "austerity measures" (if you can even call them that) are fairly mild compared to what is going on in Spain and Greece. English says we'll be in surplus by 2015, that obviously remains to be seen.

* Labour/Greens/NZ First vs National/Act/Maori Party: John Key plans to return to surplus by bankrupting the country? What is after quadrupling the national debt in two years?

(Image)

Bankrupting the country? Do you realise how relatively low that is? Compare that to 102% of GDP in the US, 82% in Britain and Germany, 50% in Finland etc etc.

Our public debt is remarkably low in the current economic conditions, it may have swelled in wake of the Canterbury earthquakes, but it still is fairly low and it definitely isn't bankrupting us.

Unless the economies of China and Australia suddenly collapse, New Zealand is standing in a strong position, and this is coming from someone who is typically a pessimist.

[New Rogernomics]

The Household Labour Force Survey is crap. I'd say the real unemployment rate is slightly higher. Not to mention if all those Kiwis hadn't migrated to Australia, it'd be even higher.

That being said, I'm loving how the left is always quick to jump of Key whenever the economy is doing shit. Businesses for the most part, create jobs. It's up to business to grow and employ people. Key doesn't run people's businesses. If business owners cannot employ people, how is that Key's responsibility? We can't all be civil servants, economies don't function like that. That's why business needs to be allowed to do business, because that is how jobs get created.

Besides, most of these job losses are due to a high dollar, and not because of government policies.

Sorry but the high dollar is to do with government policies or rather economic inaction. The free market is a myth, New Zealand is filled with so many corporate and government monopolies (from the AA to electricity companies). The government's role is to make the environment friendly for businesses, this is a state capitalist system; any attempts at austerity are doomed to fail, just a quick read of Keynes would explain that. You can't grow an economy by allowing unemployment to spiral out of control, you cannot grow an economy by cutting education spending and sacking tens of thousands of people (they spend money, which in turn stimulates the economy; and generates tax revenue). That is why the stimulus has saved the US economy and created jobs, whereas NZ austerity has done nothing; the effect being that any recovery is too slow and cannot keep pace with mounting debt. The debt is at such levels that only a change of government could hope to fix it, fortunately 'the left' as you call it is rising in the polls.

I will be glad to see John Key pack his bags back to Auckland, he can share a home with Ruthanasia. Austerity will be gone in two years, and when Labour, NZ First and the Greens pour billions into the economy and education to create jobs; that is when the true recovery will began. National may have been popular to begin with, but it's policies are as backward as they were in the 1990s; and there are still two more years for National support to implode. An economist friend of mine believes that the NZ banks are set to collapse, because the profits are too high and that reveals massive flaws in the NZ economy. National is a party for people who hate the disabled and view them as refuse (they cut the funding for disabled in schools), hate the unemployed with more venom that Romney is capable of, hate kids (closes their schools and cuts cooking and skills classes), want to destroy the environment (mining national parks for 1% royalty while foreign corporates take 99%), support creationism (charter schools) and believe in the free market myth. I am close to packing my bags, John Key is worse than George Bush ever was; and tens of thousands of Americans left to escape him. If I get hate from that, I don't care. National is the devil.

PS: National and Labour both follow the Chicago School of Economics, the IMF and the World Bank. NZ is often described as Pinochet's economic reforms without the bloodshed. They are very narrow minded economically, so I am glad that the Greens and NZ First are doing well in the polls; Chicago isn't the only economic school in the world you know. If Argentina (and many South American nations) hadn't told the IMF/World Bank/Chicago School to walk off a cliff they would have never recovered.

*sigh* I really need lunch, this is what happens when I am hungry. I also am relationship starved, I need to leave to America I think to find true love.

[Costa Alegria]

New Zealand is filled with so many corporate and government monopolies (from the AA to electricity companies).

Eh? Aside from Air New Zealand's complete monopoly over the regional market, I can't really think of anything else that's government owned that has everything to itself. The railways perhaps?

When Labour, NZ First and the Greens pour billions into the economy and education to create jobs; that is when the true recovery will began.

By printing billions of extra notes and playing with the currency system to the extent that we may end up with a very worthless currency? No thanks. I want the NZ$ to retain a little value, not like the currencies of countries in Europe where wads of cash bought one a cup of coffee.

National is a party for people who hate the disabled and view them as refuse (they cut the funding for disabled in schools), hate the unemployed with more venom that Romney is capable of, hate kids (closes their schools and cuts cooking and skills classes), want to destroy the environment (mining national parks for 1% royalty while foreign corporates take 99%), support creationism (charter schools) and believe in the free market myth.

National isn't perfect, granted, but it is not like the above. Seriously, creationism? Hatin' on disabled people? What idiotic crap will you pull from that horrid brown orifice that spawned this shit next?

I am close to packing my bags.

Fuck off then.

National is the devil.

You've lost your mind completely.

I really need lunch.

A brain wouldn't go amiss. Failing that, a gun.