While trade barriers may keep wealthy countries wealthy, they also keep poor countries poor. From New Zealand’s point of view, being a agriculture and commodity dependent economy, are we also still a developing country?

the truth is that so much of New Zealand’s economy at the moment is under serious threat if you like from the fact that we’re having to borrow hundreds of millions of dollars every week actually in order to just pay the interest on our current borrowing.We’re having a housing bubble at the moment…

Ok got you. So we are borrowing too much. I guess that means we should cut back both in government and particularly in personal borrowing since you mention the housing boom…

…there are other kinds of tools that we can use to deal with economic issues that are affecting New Zealand, like increasing the ability for banks for example to lend ….

Huhbutwhat? First she says we borrowed too much, then she says she wants to make it easier for banks to lend (further increase borrowing).

In spite of what Turei says about “economic sovereignty”, the only real problem with free trade is that it tends to get applied asymetrically by hypocrites: the likes of the EU (france in particular) and the US, who lobby other countries to reduce trade barriers but keep their own intact. Were there more even handed reductions in trade barriers, developing countries would benefit enormously as their comparatively cheap labour would give them the edge.

Now I guess the greens would say this would result in exploitation of the developing country labour force, however it is obvious that in the long term, the increase in empolyment in the deveoping countries would force the wage rates up, raising their standards of living.

Nice catch.

But in some ways it is the exact opposite of irony: there is no part of the economy the Greens could put their superannuation money that does not benefit from trading, if not in the short term then certainly in the long term.

Even manufacturing, although it now employs fewer people in first world economies, still produces far more output than thirty years ago. There have been astounding gains in productivity in manufacturing, in good part because that sector has gained access to capital and ideas both locally and from overseas through trade.

Or maybe this is just indicative of the ‘close-knit’ Greeny community.
Anyone got a banjo?

So, sure, probably those are all innocent investments. But they didn’t cut Bill English much slack, did they?

So, after we finish with the Greens’ housing in Wellington, and the Greens’ and Labour’s office accommodation in electorates and elsewhere, shall we move on to their super fund investments in areas impacted by policies they have input into?

Bill Garnder has been battling for years to get a right to sell the stuff overseas and earn us about $300 million from a few hectares of land.

Although I think Libertarians are bat s**t crazy one of the points I read on their site rang very true, it read, “Do you support tariffs between the North and South Island? If not your a free trader because they are ALL just lines on a map”…

I think several minor party’s policies would be very bad for NZ, but I never bother to mention them. I don’t see those parties as a serious threat, as their chances of getting their bills passed are low.

I trust you haven’t forgotten a certain bill put forward by Green Party member Sue Bradford which passed into law just recently?

No serious threat to the freedoms of NZers whatsoever, right?
Hardly worth a mention really, eh?
Just some little ineffectual ‘minor’ party?
This is the curse of MMP; little ‘minor’ parties DO have a disproportionate effect on policy, and can hold major parties to ransom. Ever heard the term ‘king maker’ before? Didn’t exist prior to MMP.

I couldn’t help wondering where I had seen that look on Turei’s face,………………….. now its suddenly come back to me. 2am in the morning travelling down to Cooks Beach – a possum in the middle of the road, first hit by my headlights -looking right at me approaching at 100k – just the look on its face in that final second………………..BadoompBadoomp

This poor woman should be going back to some P.R. firm to get advice on how to deal with the press, even when dealing with tepid questions she looked out of her depth.

Many right wing bloggers spend a lot of energy attacking a very minor party that can barely scrape above the 5% threshold. Why is that? Are they afraid?

[DPF: Most of the time I attack their policies because I think they would be very bad for NZ.]